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Parks & People Pitching In On Baltimore Zoo Snow Recovery

From The Baltimore Business Journal - by Ryan Sharrow Staff

The Parks & People Foundation will use federal stimulus funds to help the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore clean up from damages caused by nearly 50 inches of snow last month.

Four teams of five Parks & People employees will work at the Zoo on March 4 and 5 clearing debris, caring for damaged plants and doing minor building repairs. The zoo suffered more than $2 million in damages from twin snowstorms that blanketed the region in early February.

On Tuesday, the Zoo — one of the city’s top tourist attractions — said it will reopen March 13. It was scheduled to open March 1 for the spring season.

The Parks & People employees will be paid from $1.1 million in stimulus funds the Baltimore nonprofit received from the U.S. Forest Service.

The foundation’s “Green Up, Clean Up” team will work over the next 18 months on restoring urban habitat and watersheds; trail maintenance, horticulture, landscaping and trash clean-ups. The effort is aimed at restoring the Chesapeake Bay.