Camden Greenways Conference (2003)
CGI host the first Greenways Conference at Rutgers University. The conference is successful in bringing attention to the needs of the Camden Greenways.
1st annual Bike Tour & Walk (2004)Camden Greenways, Inc. holds its first successful Greenways Bike Tour and Walk
Working with the Trust for Public Land (TPL), Camden
City and Camden County, CGI has been involved in the
negotiation of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between
the County, the City and CGI, Inc. for the acquisition,
development and maintenance of the Camden Greenways System.
Several meetings were held with the above named parties and
also included representatives of the Trust for Public Land (TPL)
and the Camden Redevelopment Agency. These meetings were facilitated by Mr.
Chuck Flink of Greenways Inc. of Durham North Carolina.
Mr. Flink was hired by TPL through a grant from the Ford Foundation.
CGI will play a role in coordinating routine maintenance of the greenway,
as well as promotion of the greenway and programming of events. Further,
as a non-profit land conservation organization, CGI may apply for Green
Acres funding for land acquisition and trail development. CGI will, as always,
continue to advocate for construction of the Greenway, always mindful of its
environmental benefits, as well as its economic and recreational benefits.
The City of Camden has tentatively agreed to take ownership of
parcels acquired for the Greenway. The County has tentatively agreed
to assist in the acquisition of parcels and the development and
maintenance of the Greenway Trail System.
The execution of this MOU will allow the County,
TPL and the New Jersey Conservation Foundation (NJCF)
to at last enter into negotiations with property owners
along the Greenway and to acquire key parcels that will
serve to close gaps that exist in the Greenway. Funding
is available from the above sources for these acquisitions.
CGI has been active in negotiations among the City, the Board of Education
and the New Jersey Schools Construction Corporation with respect to the Pine
Street Corridor. With a new Early Childhood Development Center being constructed
along Pine Street across from New Camden Park, and a need for additional parking
and soccer facilities, the opportunity exists for the acquisition of the Solutia
site, a 4.72+ acre site along Pine Street, and a key parcel within the Camden Greenway.
This acquisition would facilitate the construction of one of the last portions of the
Greenway trail within the Phase I Loop. This loop currently uses Pine Street and
St. Micheil St. to connect the off road trail at New Camden Park to the River Birch
Trail at Flanders Avenue.
CGI is part of a Steering Committee which currently includes
representatives from TPL, Camden City, the Camden County Municipal
Utilities Authority, The Delaware River Keeper Network and the Trust
for Public Land. This Steering Committee was formed by TPL to
develop a strategic plan to implement the Camden Greenway as part
of the City's Redevelopment Plan. A component of this strategic
plan will be to use the Greenway as ". a tool for integrating
stormwater management to help address flooding and overflow issues
in the City ". TPL has received funding from the Ford Foundation
for this project.
The New Jersey Conservation Foundation,
with a representative on the CGI Board,
has been awarded funding by the William
Penn Foundation to hire a full time Project Manager
to assist CGI and other partners (i.e. City, County, TPL),
".with the preservation and stewardship of greenways and open space
in the City of Camden for a two year period."
CGI has prepared a power point presentation to show to neighborhood
organizations, interested citizens, and elected officials both within
and without the City of Camden. The Board views this presentation as a
dynamic presentation to be modified as needed in order to build support
for the Greenway within the City's neighborhoods.
CGI held an Open House on April 12th at City Coffee on Market St. in Camden.
The purpose of this Open House, attended by about 30 people, was to educate
Camden residents about the Greenway and its many benefits and to recruit new
CGI Board members. In addition to a brief presentation by CGI co-President
Algiers Holmes and Board member Fred Stine (Delaware River Keeper Network),
attendees were treated to unscheduled, yet informative, presentations by
representatives of the City of Camden and Camden Youth Soccer Association.
Dwayne Williams of Camden City spoke about a school construction project
in East Camden that includes the construction of a trail with possible
linkages to the Greenway. Ed Bonette of Camden Youth Soccer Association
spoke about that organization's efforts to teach soccer fundamentals to
children in Camden and their support for the Camden Greenway initiative.
The Open House also provided opportunities for CGI members to network with
representatives of various neighborhoods, the Coopers Ferry Development Corporation,
and Philadelphia Green, a CGI sister organization based in Philadelphia.
Following up on discussions at the Open House, Joan Reilly
from the Pennsylvania Horticulture Society and Philadelphia
Green, attended CGI's May 20th Board meeting to offer their
continuing support to the Board and the benefit of their
experience and expertise in greenways development and maintenance.
Moreover, representatives from "Philly Green" have offered to perform
outreach in the Parkside section of the City as well as another yet to
be determined neighborhood.
A bike tour of the Greenway was held on May 21st. Attendees
completed a nine mile loop from New Camden Park around the Phase
I Loop to Cooper River Park in Pennsauken and Newton Lake Park
in Collingswood and in Haddon Township before returning to New Camden Park.
On the strength of the above noted achievements, CGI has been awarded
a Ford Foundation Grant in the amount of $50,000. This Grant is for the
period of one year from February 1, 2005 through January 31, 2006.
