The Green Committee creates green spaces, supports sustainable environmental efforts within the downtown Sykesville community, and manages the Sykesville Community Garden. The Green and Wellness Initiative Projects group will continue maintaining the Main Street garden, developing the Schoolhouse garden, and designing projects to support litter removal, greening activities, community education, and wellness in downtown Sykesville.
The Keep Sykesville Beautiful (KSB) group is a partnership between the Clean, Green, and Safe Committee of the Downtown Sykesville Connection (a nonprofit organization administering the Main Street program in Sykesville), the Town of Sykesville Staff/Public Works Department, and Sykesville Parks & Recreation.
Together, the three partners will use Keep America Beautiful’s framework for community education and hands-on stewardship that reduces litter, encourages recycling, promotes grassroots volunteerism, and makes sustainable improvement possible for communities of all sizes. KSB aims to improve behavior and create innovative, locally-focused programs that address the specific needs of this area and its population with the goal to reach deep into tour communities to effect meaningful, positive changes.
Upcoming Fundraisers:
o BotaniGal Fundraiser: 10% of the sales for the month of March.
o 14th Annual Dinner Fundraiser at E.W. Beck’s on 3/4/2023:
Please support our garden with a visit to E.W. Beck's Pub & Restaurant!
10% of all carry-out, lunch and/or dinner purchased at E.W. Beck's on this day will go towards the 'Eileen M. Merkle' Sykesville Community Garden. All money raised will go towards mulch, seedlings, seeds and other materials for the year. The Green Committee gives back to the community by providing educational nature programs and a place for the community to garden… for free!
o Garden Fundraiser at Noodles & Co:
Dining and online ordering will benefit our beautiful garden on 3/11/2024!
Use the coupon code “GIVING25” for online orders or mention the Garden when ordering in at the restaurant for 25% of all sales to go directly back to the garden.
2022 Achievements
– Completion of the Cigarette Littering Prevention Program.
– Participation in the sustainable community application with the Town of Sykesville.
– Award and initiation of the Clean Up Green Up award to provide downtown businesses with recycled eco-friendly paper bags.
– Planting and watering of the Main Street flower pots.
2021 Achievements
– Maintenance of the 2 downtown community gardens.
– Purchase and installation of a stand-up tool shed at the Main Street community garden.
– Application and award of the Healing the Planet grant through Keep Sykesville Beautiful – beautification project at the Little Sykes.
– Application and award of the Clean Up Green Up grant – paper bags for downtown businesses.
– Application and award of the Cigarette Littering Prevention Program through Keep Sykesville Beautiful
– Purchase and customization of cigarette collectors/educational program.
– Planting and watering of the Main Street flower pots.
2020 Achievements
– Maintenance of the 2 downtown community gardens.
– Flowering and maintenance of the parklet flower bed and Main Street flower pots year-round.
– Planning, coordinating, and hosting of 4 educational programs at the Main Street garden and community clean-ups.
– Improvement of social media outreach.
– Completion of the Keep Sykesville Beautiful (KSB) training and certification.
– Creation of a KSB webpage
– Creation of the KSB work plan and list of activities.
– Planting and watering of the Main Street flower pots.
2019 Achievements
– Renovation of the Sykesville Main Street sign at the garden.
– Purchase a bench for the garden.
– Replacement of all flower beds with cedar lumbers, funded with the first Clean Up Green Up grant awarded to the DSC.
– Maintenance of the 2 downtown community gardens.
– Addition of a fence and apple tree at the schoolhouse road garden.
– Planting and watering of the Main Street flower pots.
