The Women’s Committee of the Central Park Conservancy celebrated its 35th anniversary in 2018, an event which is also seeing positive ripple effects into 2019. In honor of the occasion, the committee and the Central Park Conservancy’s Campaign, Forever Green: Ensuring the Future of Central Park, combined forces to raise a minimum of $5 million which helps fund the $10 million redevelopment initiative for the Conservatory Garden.
Located off Fifth Avenue between 104th to 106th Streets, Central Park’s six-acre Conservatory Garden remains the only formal garden in the entire park. While the garden is known for its lilac trees, gorgeous perennials and reblooming roses, its last significant restoration was in 1983, the same year the Women’s Committee was established. Since then, decades of weather and other damages have demanded the need for upgrades and repairs.
The Forever Green Restoration Initiative
The restoration project largely focuses on the redesign of the Conservatory Garden’s renowned horticultural elements and hardscapes, nearly all of which are original to the Garden’s 1937 construction. A network of new paths and plazas and infrastructure upgrades including walkway improvements, the modernization of the Untermeyer and Burnett fountains and the refurbishment of the Wisteria pergola.
According to the Central Park Conservancy’s brochure, the garden is known as one of the world’s greatest masterworks of formal garden design due to the expert design of the original founders. The Garden is divided into three smaller sections with distinct styles including Italian, French and English patterns with an iconic wrought-iron Vanderbilt Gate at the main entrance. It’s no surprise that the likes of Martha Stewart and Michael Bloomberg include themselves as supporters of the Conservatory Garden, often attending the annual Frederick Law Almstead Awards Luncheon, which raises funds for the park’s management and projects.
The Garden is a particularly significant project for the Women’s Committee as the horticultural direction has long been in the hands of notable women including Lynden Miller who led the site’s 1983 restoration, and long-time Garden curator Diane Schaub.
The Women’s Committee Blooming Legacy
Founded by Norma Dana in 1983, The Women’s Committee of the Central Park Conservancy is comprised of a dynamic group of four women who dedicate their time to the beautification and preservation of Central Park and its many projects.
Today, the committee boasts over 1,000 members who spearhead programs that allow anyone to invest in the betterment of the park and its gardens. Since the group’s founding, they have raised over $175 million and have spearheaded projects like the revitalization of the Charles A. Dana Discovery Center, two renovation projects at the Safari Playground, and the recreation of the urns at Bow Bridge.
The committee is part of a larger vision served by the private, not-for-profit Central Park Conservancy to preserve, restore and enhance Central Park in partnership with the local community. Their goal is to raise awareness and encourage investment in the green space.
Each year, they raise about 15 percent of the Conservancy’s $67 million annual budget through numerous membership and charitable events. Through the passion and dedication of these incredible women, we may still have this green space for decades to come.
If you wish to support to the Conservancy Garden’s restoration project, please donate at the link.