Mount Vernon Place Conservancy

The Friends of Mount Vernon Place is pleased to announce that we will be officially partnering with the Mount Vernon Place Conservancy. In our new role, the Friends will continue to provide programming in the parks, as well as volunteer support to maintain the landscaping in the four parks for everyone to enjoy. As the Conservancy forms committees, Friends members will be encouraged to join the committees where there is a special interest. There is no shortage of work to be accomplished, and we will all work together as a team.

Quick Facts about the Mount Vernon Place Conservancy

What is the Conservancy?

The Mount Vernon Conservancy (MVPC) is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization with a Board of Directors established in November 2008 to restore and manage the use of Mount Vernon Place in partnership with the City of Baltimore. Board and committee members have extensive historic preservation, horticultural, operations and fundraising experience.

What precedents are there for a Mount Vernon Place Conservancy?

The MVPC – City of Baltimore partnership is modeled after successful public-private partnerships, such as those between the City of New York and the Central Park Conservancy and the Bryant Park Conservancy to restore and manage New York’s Central Park and Bryant Park respectively. The main goal of the MVPC – City of Baltimore partnership is to restore and manage the use of Mount Vernon Place so that people today and in the future can continue to enjoy it.

Who has endorsed the Conservancy?

Mayor Rawlings-Blake, Mayor Sheila Dixon, Friends of Mount Vernon Place, Mount Vernon-Belvedere Association, and many institutions, organizations and individuals.

What is the Master Plan?

A museum-quality comprehensive plan by the design firm, Olin Studio of Philadelphia, to restore and install much-needed infrastructure and accessibility improvements in the four Parks and Washington Monument, which comprise Mount Vernon Place. The Conservancy has so far raised over $300,000 in donations to commission a plan of this comprehensive nature with the highest caliber of excellence.

How was the design firm chosen?

A RFP (Request for Proposal) was issued, and Olin Studio was selected amongst the many applicants. Olin Studio is a leading landscape design and preservation firm in the United States with expertise in urban landscapes. The firm’s work includes the Washington Monument grounds in the District of Columbia, Bryant Park and Columbus Circle in New York, the Midway Plaisance Winter Garden in Chicago, the Stark Sculpture Garden at the Getty Center in Santa Monica, California, the Sculpture Garden of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC and the landscape for the new U. S. Embassy in London, England. The firm also recently received a new commission to redesign the public space in front of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Make no mistake: The Olin Studio is committed to preservation and urban revitalization, and have made their recommendations after extensive research and evaluation.

Will there be major changes to the historic fabric of Mount Vernon Place?

No. The MVPC board and restoration committee members are committed to preserving the characteristic design features of Mount Vernon Place. Every aspect of the Master Plan was carefully considered and debated.

Who has evaluated the Master Plan?

The Plan is currently being reviewed by the Baltimore city Commission for Historical & Architectural Preservation (CHAP). It has also been reviewed by the Mount Vernon-Belvedere Association Architectural Review Committee as well as peer reviewed by many experts in historic preservation. The Plan has been praised as a model of preservation and park management with standards exceeding those recommended by the Secretary of the Interior.

Why the major effort?

There is significant damage to and deterioration of the marble balustrades, fountain basins, retaining walls, sidewalks, and other architectural elements throughout Mount Vernon Place, including structural issues with the Monument itself. The soils, which are compacted and contaminated, cannot support a successful tree canopy. Additionally, the existing trees were planted too deeply in soil pits that were too small, which resulted in damaging the health and long term viability of the trees and canopy. The current plan is to replace the trees, and implement above ground and underground infrastructure that will support the long term health of the trees and canopy. The plan is replace the existing trees with similarly large, mature trees with 8” caliper (diameter) specimens that will be approximately 30’ tall, which will provide an instant canopy. Trees surrounding the perimeter of the park (near the sidewalk) will be 6” caliper (diameter) and approximately 25’ tall. The Master Plan is designed to provide a lasting legacy for future generations to enjoy the historic treasure that Mount Vernon Place is, and to allow the trees to survive and thrive in this harsh urban environment.

Who will pay for the implementation of the Master Plan?

The Conservancy was formed because it is clear that the City of Baltimore, with so many pressing demands on its resources, cannot fully support the restoration that Mount Vernon Place deserves. The majority of funding will come from foundations, businesses, the federal government (Baltimore’s Washington Monument is a designated National Historic Landmark within a National Historic Landmark District on a newly designated National Scenic Byway), state government, and private donations, which will be used to leverage Baltimore City’s contribution.

What are some of the new features of the Master Plan?

Above ground and underground infrastructure (irrigation, drainage, rainwater run-off collection, electrical) along with replacement of all contaminated soil, and new perimeter sidewalks for improved access. No more stringing electrical cables through trees during Flower Mart and Book Festival. The Plan is an investment in the future of Mount Vernon Place for the next century.

What is so special about Carrere and Hastings and the original design?

Mount Vernon Place is considered the finest landscape still in existence by the Beaux-Arts firm of Carrere and Hastings, which was most famous for their winning 1897 New York Public Library design. Originally designed as formal French gardens with symmetry and clear lines of sight, the current status of the four Mount Vernon Place Parks does not reflect the firm’s original vision. Once restored, proper visual focus and grandeur will be returned to the spaces.

Why is the proposed budget for the Master Plan so high?

The budget is significant because Mount Vernon Place is a national treasure and deserves the finest level of care and museum-quality craftsmanship. The public-private partnership created to achieve this goal will allow resources to be brought to this project that the City could not accomplish on its own. The financial analysis is also conservative with multiple contingencies.

Why did I not hear about this plan earlier?

The MVPC and Olin have presented the Plan many times in public forums and to city officials over the past year, including a CHAP-sponsored public informational hearing at the Engineers Club in June and again to CHAP Commissioners (open to the public) in September, October, December and February.

Why the rush?

2015 is the bicentennial of the cornerstone laying of Biltmore’s Robert Mills designed monument. It is anticipated that there will be a renewed interest in preserving and restoring the nation’s first monument in honor of George Washington. Potential donors, including the federal and state government and foundations, would expect that nay plan worth contributing to must be of the highest caliber.