If you haven't heard the good news yet, Southside ReLeaf is working with the city to bring five new parks online in South Richmond, starting with Ernest Road Park. Developing the space into a public park involves ridding 1.5 acres of land from invasive ivy that is covering the ground and climbing many of the mature trees. To help with ivy removal, we’ve enlisted the help of a hungry herd of sheep from RVA Goats and Honey.

What?

We are inviting the community to come see the new park at Ernest Road and watch the sheep happily munch on the invasive vines on Saturday, November 9 from 10 am to 12 pm. Our co-founder Amy Wentz and greening coordinator Syd Collier will be on-site to provide more information about the park, the ongoing plans for developing it, and to answer any questions. Feedback from the community on what they want to see at the new park is enthusiastically welcomed!

Who?

All are welcome to see the new park and watch the sheep, and we especially hope to see neighbors from the surrounding neighborhoods stop by.

When?

We’ll have staff on-site at the park on Saturday, November 9 from 10 am - 12 pm. The sheep will be on-site through at least November 14, and the public is welcome to stop by any time. If you come to the space when staff are not present, please be mindful of the electric fence surrounding the sheep.

Where?

Using your GPS, navigate to 4701 Ernest Rd. Parking will be in a residential neighborhood on the street. Parking anywhere nearby is sufficient, but please do not block driveways or mailboxes. The entrance to the park space is a wide grassy path between two houses (see image below taken from Google Maps; the red arrow demonstrates where to find the entrance to the park).

Do I need to sign up?

No sign up required! If you have any questions about this event or about the new park, please email Lisa at lisa@southsidereleaf.org.