Residents replant, renovate rain gardens

Sarah Minkewicz

Manorhaven residents teamed up with the village on Saturday to replant and renovate the rain gardens on either side of Manorhaven Boulevard near Ashwood and Boxwood Roads.

Officials said the rain garden revitalization project is the beginning of improvements to Manorhaven Boulevard in Port Washington. 

“Rejuvenating these gardens was long overdue. This project turned our community’s main entrance from a weed-filled eyesore to beautiful and welcoming,” Trustee Priscilla von Roeschlaub said. “I was overwhelmed with the number of people who came to help revitalize these gardens. They were as enthusiastic as I was to see the transformation take place!” 

Completed four years ago, von Roeschlaub, who is running for re-election, said the gardens were not maintained by the Village, as required by a State contract. 

Von Roeschlaub, who heads the village board’s beautification committee, said to avoid defaulting on a $14,500 grant and having to return the funding to the state, she formed a committee to work on the renovation project with her.

She said they were able to replant the gardens for under $2,000, saving the Village $12,500.

Von Roeschlaub and fellow committee members, Dolores Kazanjian-O’Brien, Michelle Roper and Jennifer Wilson-Pines, selected attractive, drought-tolerant native plants for the garden. 

Manorhaven’s Department of Public Work staff removed garbage, cleared weeds and turned over the soil. 

Volunteers, included Trustee Jim Avena, Deputy Village Clerk Sharon Natale-Abramski, several Brownies from Troop 420 and many other volunteers came with sunhats and garden gloves and were given tools to start digging. 

Within three hours, seven rain garden sites were finished. 

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