Greening Southside

At Southside ReLeaf, we focus on urban forestry efforts, increasing the city’s tree canopy cover to 60% and ensuring every resident lives within a 10-minute walk or two-mile radius of a park or green space—as outlined in the Richmond 300 Master Plan. We do this through tree plantings, arbor care, onboarding new parks, enhancing playgrounds, and working with partners to build community gardens.

Re/Building Our Parks

The Southside is home to several parks and playgrounds, but many are in disrepair. In fact, many of our neighbors are not within a 10-minute walk to a public park. For 8th and 9th District residents, the average walk to the nearest greenspace is the highest and heat islands are more prevalent.

We’re working to change that by creating communal spaces and investing resources to address infrastructural barriers that keep people inside instead of outdoors. Below, explore the park development and enhancement projects we’re working with the community to complete.

Blackwell Park Upgrades

5 New Parks in Southside

Tree Planting and Maintenance

Since our founding in 2021, Southside ReLeaf has harnessed the power of community partners and volunteers to mobilize over 600 volunteers, plant over 1,100 trees in public spaces, and give away another 650 trees to residents for planting on private properties. We have led tree planting and/or maintenance projects at:

  • Various Richmond Public School campuses (Blackwell Elementary, Henderson Middle, John Marshall High, Miles Jones Elementary, Swansboro Elementary, Richmond High School for the Arts, J.L. Francis Elementary, G.H. Reid Elementary, Summer Hill Preschool, Boushall Middle)

  • Hickory Hill Community Center

  • Davee Gardens

  • Swansboro Playground

  • Blackwell Playground

  • Ernest Road Park

Below, learn more about some of our greening projects and the impact this work has had on communities in South Richmond.

RPS Campuses

Hickory Hill

Davee Gardens

Community Workdays

We host regular community workdays to maintain the green spaces we enhance in Southside. Newly-planted trees need to be watered regularly until they are established. And when trees are established, it’s still our responsibility to provide long-term tree care to get the best return on investment.

Volunteers apply fresh mulch to a young tree that was planted the previous year at Swansboro Playground.

Volunteers remove weeds from the base of a tree that was planted a year prior in the Davee Gardens neighborhood.

Volunteers complete structural pruning on a young tree at Boushall Middle School.

Ready to get involved? Volunteer at an upcoming workday and sign up for our newsletter to stay updated on greening work in the Southside.