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In football, there are those who feel that momentum is simply an illusion, but there are others who strongly feel that it is real and perceivable. I tend to fall in the latter camp, probably because I tend to get really wrapped up in the games that I follow. Likewise, at Bellingrath Gardens & Home, our forward momentum is both real and palpable. Many of the projects that I have been mentioning over the past couple of years or so are moving along very quickly now, and those of you who have visited BGH in recent weeks can attest to this progress.
1. The Summer House renovation is well underway. As of this writing, the timber frame roof has been erected and tongue-and-groove roof cladding is partially installed. Work is also underway for a plaque that will recognize our major donors to this project. When completed, this restoration will showcase the level of design, detail, and craftsmanship that we will apply to all future work done in enacting the Master Plan. With the refurbished iron lace being the next step in this construction project, that will only leave the copper roof to be installed, something that may have to wait until after the 2025 Magic Christmas in Lights season is finished.
2. The Magnolia Room Phase 1 improvements project is also underway, to the point that work should be completed within another week or so. The two major changes that Phase 1 brings to this conference room are that a) a corridor now exists for Café staff to walk from the Kitchen to the Pantry without having to interrupt guests in the Magnolia Room, and b) a connecting doorway now opens the Magnolia Room up to the Dining Hall, providing us with flexibility for renting each room separately, or together. Phase 2 will see floor and ceiling treatments for the Magnolia Room, but no timetable is yet set for this phase. We extend our sincere gratitude to The Dr. Monte L. Moorer Foundation Charitable Trust, The A.S. Mitchell Foundation, and The Julien E. Marx Foundation Trust for their generous support in making this project possible.
3. The Admissions Building is enjoying exciting changes to its interiors via the completion of Phase 1 upgrades: new flooring (carpet and tile treatments) and an always helpful fresh coat of paint. (We even have haint blue ceilings, now, ya’ll!) The bathroom corridor for this building also has new carpet and will soon have beautiful new wallpaper, which we can’t wait for you to see. As this building is the literal “front door” of BGH, we have long wanted to update the décor, which was showing its age. Thanks to our recent successes in bringing in more visitors to BGH, we are happy to be able to present to you these newly refreshed building interiors that are furnished by the very dollars we collect at Admissions.
4. Over the last few years, we have been systematically replacing old, worn-out roofs on our many buildings scattered around the BGH campus. The latest project, completed just last month, saw the replacement of a decades’-old asphalt shingle roof on the Horticulture / Development Office building. In the grand scheme of things, this was not a major project, but it still represents a $13,000+ investment going against a backlog of over $10-15 million in deferred maintenance work needed at BGH. And, for our Horticulture leadership team and our Director of Development, this is a welcome improvement to the building where they are based.
5. A project that I have probably not yet mentioned is one that will see BGH begin to flex its science muscles, allowing us to communicate with the Fowl River in real time. What such project could this be? Is it something of science fiction? Is this like the Russians training dolphins to detect sea mines? Well, no! Working with our colleagues at both the Mobile Bay National Estuary Program (MBNEP) and Dauphin Island Sea Lab (DISL), we have purchased equipment that will allow us to measure and share data revealing how the Fowl River is a living and breathing ecosystem. This specialized equipment will continuously measure the Fowl River’s water temperature, flow, dissolved oxygen content, and salinity, and these data will be logged and communicated for visitors to observe directly. Imagine being be able to show students in our STEM Education Program and visitors, via a computer monitor station located on the river pavilion, exactly what is happening with the Fowl River after a heavy rainfall, or with a strong southeasterly wind, or during a period of drought?! We think that the possibilities are endless, and our partners at MBNEP and DISL are just as excited as we are.
Recently, I communicated to the Garden’s Board of Directors that over the past five years BGH has invested over $3.4 million back into the organization, much needed funds that are helping drive our palpable growth and momentum. These investments are only possible because of your continuing patronage and support, but, truthfully, … the best is yet to come. For the five projects I described above, I could list five more that are underway or in the planning stages.
As always, stay tuned for continuing excitement and inspiration from “The Charmed Spot of the South,” and make sure to visit often to see these positive changes taking place.
Sincerely,
Todd