Delaware Botanic Gardens grant to fund welcome center

The Delaware Community Foundation presented a $25,000 capital grant to the Delaware Botanic Gardens to build its new welcome center and enable the gardens to open in 2019.

Representing the Delaware Community Foundation, Bill Allan, senior vice president for Southern Delaware, said, “The DCF has been part of this project from the day the garden first acquired the land from the Sussex County Land Trust. It’s exciting to witness the gardens evolve from drawings on paper to thousands of plants in the ground. We can literally see the garden taking root.”

DBG President Ray Sander said, “The Delaware Community Foundation grant will be covering a major part of the initial building costs for the welcome center, and DBG will also be covering a large portion of the center’s outfitting cost.”

DBG Executive Director Sheryl Swed said, “On behalf of the entire DBG team, we want to thank the Delaware Community Foundation for this generous and timely capital grant for the welcome center. This structure is an essential element for our 2019 public opening. The welcome center will be the focal point of our interactions with visitors. This is where visitors will pay their admission, become members, and purchase DBG merchandise and plants. Like all the major garden paths, the Welcome Center will be ADA compatible.”

Director of Horticulture Gregg Tepper is creating the center’s immediate garden environment. He said, “The welcome center will be the first impression our visitors will experience. It will be the threshold that moves visitors from the parking-entry garden area into the full experience of the gardens.”

For more information, go to www.delawaregardens.org.