Peace Garden At West River

2026 Greenspace Report

Established in 1988 by the City of New Haven Peace Commission, the West River Peace Garden, the West River Peace Garden became a symbol of peace when New Haven was named a Peace Messenger City by the United Nations in 1990. The physical embodiment of this designation, the West River Peace Garden welcomes newcomers to the city and residents alike, provoking conversations of peace and compassion. This is best represented by the Peace Garden’s crowning jewel, a Ginkgo grown from a sapling from the Ginkgo tree that survived the atomic bombing of Hiroshima, donated by the City of Hiroshima. This summer, the Friends of the West River Peace Garden planted a new Ginkgo to mirror the already present Ginkgo and frame the flower beds. The rest of the season’s work focused on stewardship of the flower beds, weeding, mulching, watering, and planting a wide variety of perennials and shrubs, although we were presented with the challenge of a large sinkhole in the garden. Through this planting and stewardship, we built community over discussions of peace, fulfilling the goals of the garden.

2026 Accomplishments

• 1 trees planted (Ginkgo biloba)
• 8 shrubs planted (2 Yucca filamentosa, 6 Yucca filamentosa ‘variegata’)
• 34 perennials planted (8 Eutrochium purpureum, 5 Achillea millefolium, 2 Coreopsis ‘Daybreak’, 8 Sedum spectabile, 1 Agastache, 6 sedum spurium, 1 Vernonia gigantea, 1 Andropogon gerardi, 1 Verbena, 1 Portulaca)
• 1.5 yards compost spread
• 0.5 yards mulch spread
• 8 events
• 8 volunteers
• 74 volunteer hours