Title:
Donation and Naming Request - "Robert Haywood Morrison Gardens on Little Sugar Creek Greenway"
Summary
ACTION:
1. Approve naming a public garden park "Robert Haywood Morrison Gardens on Little Sugar Creek Greenway".
2. Recognize, receive and appropriate $250,000 donation from Partners for Parks for developing Robert Haywood Morrison Gardens on Little Sugar Creek Greenway in the Capital Reserve fund. Funds remain appropriated for this purpose until project is completed.
Staff Contact: Gwen Cook, Planner-Capital Planning Division
Park and Recreation Department
Presentation: No
BACKGROUND/JUSTIFICATION: The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Trail of History, Inc. seeks to name the triangular-shaped lot located at the intersection of East Morehead Street and Harding Place in memory of Robert Haywood Morrison, who passed away in 2005. Mr. Morrison was a journalist, professor and successful businessman. He was also a long-time resident of Charlotte who delighted in the native flora of western North Carolina. His passion for botany led him to invest in properties that provided needed habitat for rare flora. The Robert Haywood Morrison Foundation’s interests remain deeply connected to Morrison’s desire to protect ecologically important land and waters.
With the support of Carolinas HealthCare system and its charitable foundation, the Robert Haywood Morrison Foundation will donate $250,000 to Partners for Parks, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting the Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation Department (MCPRD). This donation will be made available to MCPRD by Partners for Parks in calendar year 2012-13 to develop the gardens in coordination with a statue of Jane Wilkes at this site. The Trail of History will receive a $200,000 donation for the statue of Jane Wilkes and will be responsible for selecting and managing the artist chosen to create the statue. Jane Wilkes played a leading role in the effort to build the Charlotte Home and Hospital ...
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