Moorhead will have a new outdoor gathering place this summer. And organizers are seeking perennial plants and stories from the community of Moorhead to give it a uniquely local flair.
Landscaping projects began on The Heritage Garden and Amphitheater, during the first week of May, near the site of the decommissioned Moorhead Power Plant, along the Red River and near Woodlawn Park. The project is designed to reclaim a formally industrialized landscape and create an art and plant-filled space that will honor and preserve the history of the flood-prone neighborhood.
“Moorhead is unique in that it has a lot of green space, but not a lot of community gathering places,” said co-designer and project organizer Su Legatt. “This will fill that need.”
The space will feature an earthen amphitheater for outdoor performances and movie screening, benches, shade trees and sculptures made from materials salvaged from the Moorhead Power Plant. Students from the Department of Art at Concordia College have been recording audio stories from area residents, which will be accessible via QR codes throughout the park.
The organizers are seeking full sun perennial plants for the Heritage Garden from current and former Moorhead residents, including those who may have been displaced from the neighborhood due to flooding. Interested parties can email Heritagegardenmoorhead@gmail.com or participate in planting events at the site on June 6 and 7. The deadline to donate a plant is May 22.
Plants with a Moorhead history and those that have been handed down from friends and family are especially desirable and may be highlighted in the audio files or upcoming exhibits. “It’s really about celebrating the traditions and culture of Moorhead,” said Legatt. “We’re really excited about giving something back to Moorhead.”
The project is a partnership between Moorhead Public Service, the Cityof Moorhead, Moorhead Parks and Recreation, Concordia College, the Plains Art Museum and The Moorhead Power Plant Study Group. Additional funding was provided by the Lake Region Arts Council, The National Endowment for the Arts, Artplace America and the Bush Foundation.
