Wyandotte County Park Receives Update Courtesy of Project EverGreen and PBI-Gordon

Green spaces like Wyandotte County’s Huron Park are critical to urban areas as they offset the heat island effect and provide the surrounding area with cleaner air through carbon sequestration.

Maintaining and enhancing these valuable green spaces is a shared responsibility and on October 14  volunteers from Project EverGreen’s GreenCare for Communities Initiative and Kansas City-based PBI-Gordon came together to revitalize this beloved park.

The volunteer project was part of PBI-Gordon’s 75^th anniversary celebration and placed the spotlight on the substantial benefits green spaces provide to the environment and residents. PBI-Gordon is the manufacturer of turf and ornamental management products.

Huron Park has long been a central meeting place for neighborhood residents of Wyandotte County. The 7-acre park, adjacent to the well-known Huron Indian Cemetery historical landmark, provides visitors with access to shady, cool areas to walk, picnic, play with kids and relax. The park is in proximity to the KCK Public Library, Wyandotte County City Hall and the KCK Fire Department Headquarters.

PBI-Gordon employees worked side-by-side with the Unified Government’s Parks & Recreation Department employees and professional contractors to renovate Huron Park and provide the lift it needs.

Improvements to the park included:

• Edging along all sidewalks throughout the park
• Mulching all landscape beds including the rose bushes which are a mainstay at the park
• Planting a tree in honor of Project EverGreen’s GreenCare for Troops initiative which provides free lawn and landscape services for deployed military families
• Daffodil bulb planting
• Weed management
• Aeration and over-seeding
• General tree and shrub pruning and clean-up

“A well-maintained vibrant park brings cooling relief to this urban downtown,” says Cindy Code, executive director of Project EverGreen. “Bringing the community’s vision to life is possible only through collaboration of individuals, businesses, and community grants. Our professional volunteers love sharing their expertise and giving back to neighborhood parks and green spaces.”

Additional donors to the project include Ryan Lawn & Tree, SiteOne Landscape Supply and Grass Pad.

“PBI-Gordon is proud to support Project EverGreen and the work it does to enhance green spaces and urban centers nationwide,” says Neil Cleveland, senior vice president and general manager of PBI-Gordon. “It’s an honor to partner with this organization and the other donors to revitalize Wyandotte County’s Huron Park and help preserve this beloved gathering place.”

Parks, lawns, landscapes and maintained green spaces help to mitigate temperature increases in communities and significantly reduce energy use and cooling costs. Project EverGreen’s GreenCare for Communities initiative has made a significant impact. Since 2008, Project EverGreen and its partners have renovated community parks and public green spaces totaling more than 200 million square feet of living green space.

Through its nationwide base of professional volunteers, Project EverGreen has connected people, plants, and their communities to maximize the health of grass, plants, and trees, which in turn sequesters carbon and cleans the air. The initiative supports healthy green spaces in neighborhoods and cities, enabling maintained green spaces to function as the lungs of the city and offsetting the negative effects of a warming environment.