It began as a beautification contest four decades ago, but continues today as a matter of neighborhood pride.
Using largely their own resources, the residents of Laurelton have worked hard to maintain center medians on their streets as small parks featuring flowers of all different varieties.
The center malls are public property, but weren’t properly maintained during the early 1970s, as Sandra Chase of the Federated Blocks of Laurelton (FBL) recalled. The strips of grass were prone to litterbugs and dog owners who failed to clean up after their pets.
Property owners then entered a citywide contest to beautify their community and, in the years since, have used their own time and money to continue to keep the malls beautiful, Chase said.
