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Conference of Mayors, ScottsMiracle-Gro Kick Off 2013: Gro1000 GreenspaceDedications in Fort Worth, TuscaloosaRecently, Fort Worth dedicated itsnewly renovated and expanded Children’sVegetable Garden. In Tuscaloosa – almosttwo years to the day after a devastatingtornado in which more than 5,000homes and businesses were damaged ordestroyed and 53 people perished – thecity broke ground on Alberta Gardens,a greenspace that will serve as both asymbolic and literal centerpiece of Tuscaloosa’srebuilding and recovery efforts.Both projects were made possible thanksin large part to $25,000 grants from TheUnited Conference of Mayors and TheScottsMiracle-Gro Company’s GRO1000Gardens and Green Spaces Program.GRO1000, a partnership between theConference of Mayors and ScottsMiracle-Gro launched in 2011, aims to improveU.S. cities by creating increased accessto public gardens and green spaces. FortWorth and Tuscaloosa, which serve as thekick-off cities for this year’s GRO1000 program,are two of five winning cities thatwere chosen from a field of almost sixtyapplicants. The grants to the winning citiesinclude a combination of cash and in-kindproduct from ScottsMiracle-Gro, to supporttheir efforts to create dynamic newurban gardens and greenscapes in theircommunities.“From improving the urban fabricthrough enhancing the quality of publicgreen spaces, to improving access tohealthy, locally grown food for childrenand families, this partnership addressesso many of the quality-of-life issues facedin communities across the country,” saidConference of Mayors CEO and ExecutiveDirector Tom Cochran. “We’re proudto partner with ScottsMiracle-Gro tosponsor Gro1000, and to support thework of forward-thinking mayors like FortWorth Mayor Betsy Price and TuscaloosaMayor Walter Maddox to improve thequality of life for their residents.”Left to right, Texas Department of Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples,Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price, and US West Regions and Latin America ofScotts Miracle Gro President Jim Tates at the dedication ceremony for theFort Worth Children’s Garden.Fort Worth: Children’sVegetable GardenThe Children’s Vegetable Garden,located within the Fort Worth BotanicalGarden, is designed to be a gatheringplace for children and families to learnabout healthy eating, nutrition and lifestyle,in a fun, hands-on environment.Through the GRO1000 grant, the Children’sVegetable Garden now has a newirrigation system, paved walkways, educationalpavilion, playhouse, greenhousesand garden beds. GRO1000 funds willalso support educational programmingand bring more school groups to theGarden. The Garden’s new educationalpavilion will serve as an outdoor classroom,with workshops and classes for thepublic on container gardening, specialtyplants and healthy eating.“GRO1000 goes hand-in-hand withmy FitWorth initiative centered on makinghealthier life choices and fighting childhoodobesity,” said Fort Worth MayorBetsy Price in commenting on the grantaward. “When families, especially children,come visit this new garden, they willsee how to incorporate healthy foods intotheir meal and how great it is to get outsideand plant their own garden. I wantto thank The U.S. Conference of Mayorsand ScottsMiracle-Gro for this tremendousgift to the City of Fort Worth.” Duringher remarks at the dedication ceremony,Price also touted the Gro1000grant as a prime example of the types ofpublic-private partnerships that she feelsare vital to helping her city leverage itsown stretched public resources.As part of the April 12 dedication ceremony,Scotts also awarded one student– Calvin Hale, an eighth grader at theApplied Learning Academy in Fort Worth– its “Give Back to Gro Youth GardenerAward,” based on nominations receivedfrom schools and from Price’s office. Hale,who gardened since he was four yearsold, said during his acceptance speech atthe dedication ceremony that he’d formulateda fertilizer – made of kelp, bone,See GRO1000 on page 7usmayors.orgPage 6 U.S. MAYOR April 29, 2013
GRO1000from page 6seed meal, and dolomite – that, basedon an experiment he conducted, “wasbetter than Miracle-Gro.” That promptedScottsMiracle-Gro executive Jim Tates(President, U.S. Regions and Latin America)to quip, “You’re hired.”Following the formal dedication ceremony,Fort Worth schoolchildren, communityleaders and volunteers, as wellas staff and volunteers from USCM,ScottsMiracle-Gro, and other nationalpartners, were on hand to plant gardenbeds for spring.The expanded Children’s VegetableGarden is ready for the public to visitimmediately. For information on the FortWorth Botanic Garden, visit the websitewww.fwbg.org.Tuscaloosa: Alberta GardensAlberta Gardens is the final destinationalong a planned 5.5-mile City Walkthat follows the path of destruction fromthe 2011 tornado. The Gardens willencompass about 60,000 square feetof landscaping featuring fruit trees andbushes, herbs and flowers, as well as sittingareas and community garden space.The project is a cornerstone of the proposedAlberta Parkway project – one ofthe biggest recovery projects planned bythe city – for which Tuscaloosa MayorWalter Maddox has proposed allocatingmillions in federal disaster recoverymoney, including infrastructure improvementsfor roads, water, sewer, stormdrainage and fiber. “Front and centerin those recovery efforts is right here onSeventh Street East… In fact, probably thecrown jewel of our recovery is going tobe the Alberta Parkway,” Maddox said.In concert with the April 24 dedicationand ground-breaking ceremony, studentsfrom Alberta Elementary School joinedMaddox and other city officials, Conferenceof Mayors and ScottsMiracle-Grostaff, local volunteers, and GRO1000Bill Dawson, Franklin Park Conservatory and Alberta Elementary Schoolchildren throw wild flower balls into an open field as part of the educationalactivity. The balls containing wild flowers seeds that will begin togrow in the now barren area next to the new community garden.Left to right, ScottsMiracle-Gro Global Research and Development SVPBruce Caldwell, USCM staffer Crystal Swann, and Tuscaloosa MayorWalter Maddox with the $25,000 check for the GRO1000 Garden andGreenspace Award Program.national and local partners to install ediblegarden beds at recently rebuilt Habitatfor Humanity homes in the community.In addition, area residents received newflower and/or vegetable garden bedsaround their homes and children participatedin educational activities.In commenting on the significance ofAlberta Gardens, Maddox said, “Thegrowth of the Alberta Gardens will symbolizeour continued growth as a peoplewho learned there is so much more thatunites us than divides us...on this spot,thanks to Scotts Miracle-Gro and TheU.S. Conference of Mayors, the seeds ofhope will replace the harvest of despairwe experienced two years ago, and forthat we are thankful.”The Fort Worth and TuscaloosaGRO1000 dedications are the first ofseveral public installation events beingheld in the U.S., Canada and Europe thisyear. Similar dedication ceremonies andcommunity service activities will be heldin the coming weeks in each of the threeadditional winning Gro1000 U.S. citiesfor 2013:• Sacramento, CA• Bridgeport, CT• Cincinnati, OHFor more information about theGRO1000 Gardens and Green SpacesProgram, contact Crystal Swann on theConference of Mayors staff by telephoneat 202-861-6707 or send e-mail tocswann@usmayors.org.usmayors.orgApril 29, 2013 U.S. MAYOR Page 7
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