Pledge Status
Active
Pledge Date
Sunday, February 4, 2024
Program Year
2024
Links and Uploads
View Links and UploadsAction Item Report
Community Spotlight
Proclamation Issued
At a City Council Meeting on May 13th 2024, Mayor Hodges signed a proclamation declaring May Garden for Wildlife Month in the city of Grosse Pointe Park!
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Volunteer Work Days at Patterson
May 25th, June 24th and July 27th resident volunteers joined members of the Beautification Commission at Patterson Park to weed several beds. Thanks to donations from local businesses and residents, we also planted more native plants at the park.
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iNaturalist Project to promote Citizen Science
Residents can now share their observations of flora and fauna at Patterson Park by submitting photos to iNaturalist Project: Exploring Patterson Park! This data will also help us track the park's biodiversity as we continue to add native plantings.
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Anatomy of a Butterfly Presentation
On Earth day, April 22nd 2024, Commissioner Kelly Konieczki visited Defer Elementary School to talk about the importance of planting habitat for Monarchs and other wildlife.
Educational Exhibit for Flower Show
On May 16, 2024 Commissioner Kelly Konieczki provided an educational exhibit, "Monarchs, Milkweed and More" for the Junior League Gardeners Celebrations of Spring; an NGC Standard Flower Show.
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Native Plant Sale Fundraiser
On June 8th, the Grosse Pointe Park Beautification Commission hosted GPP's first ever Native Plant Sale, in partnership with Michiganense Natives, to raise awareness and funds for city plantings. A Fall Sale is planned for September 8th.
Learn MoreAction Items Committed for 2024
- Issue a proclamation to raise awareness about the decline of the monarch butterfly and the species’ need for habitat. This proclamation must incorporate a focus on monarch conservation.
- Launch or maintain a public communication effort to encourage residents to plant monarch gardens at their homes or in their neighborhoods. (If you have community members who speak a language other than English, we encourage you to also communicate in that language; Champion Pledges must communicate in that language.)
- Engage with community garden groups and urge them to plant native milkweeds and nectar-producing plants.
- Engage with city parks and recreation, public works, sustainability, and other relevant staff to identify opportunities to revise and maintain mowing programs and milkweed / native nectar plant planting programs.
- Engage with gardening leaders and partners (e.g., Master Naturalists, Master Gardeners, Nature Centers, Native Plant Society Chapters , other long-standing and influential community leaders) to support monarch butterfly conservation.
- Host or support a native seed or plant sale, giveaway or swap.
- Facilitate or support a milkweed seed collection and propagation effort.
- Plant or maintain a monarch and pollinator-friendly demonstration garden at City Hall or another prominent or culturally significant community location.
- Plant milkweed and pollinator-friendly native nectar plants along roadsides, medians, or public rights-of-way.
- Launch or maintain an outdoor education program(s) (e.g., at schools, after-school programs, community centers and groups) that builds awareness and creates habitat by engaging students, educators, and the community in planting native milkweed and pollinator-friendly native nectar plants (i.e., National Wildlife Federation’s Schoolyard Habitats program and Monarch Mission curriculum).
- Earn or maintain recognition for being a wildlife-friendly city by participating in other wildlife and habitat conservation efforts (i.e., National Wildlife Federation’s Community Wildlife Habitat program).
- Host or support a monarch neighborhood challenge to engage neighborhoods and homeowners' associations within the community to increase awareness, support community unity around a common mission, and/or create habitat for the monarch butterfly.
- Initiate or support community science (or citizen science) efforts that help monitor monarch migration and health.
- Add or maintain native milkweed and nectar-producing plants in gardens in the community.
- Launch, expand, or continue an invasive species removal program that will support the re-establishment of native habitat for monarch butterflies and other pollinators.
- Display educational signage at monarch gardens and pollinator habitat.
- Remove milkweed from the list of noxious plants in city weed / landscaping ordinances (if applicable).
Past Pledge Archive
| Mayor Name | Program Year | Pledge Date | Achievement | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mayor Michele Hodges | 2024 | 2/4/2024 | View Pledge | |
| Mayor Michele Hodges | 2023 | 3/8/2023 | Leadership Circle | View Pledge |
