The #depaving groups reclaiming #UrbanGreenSpace

by Jennifer Cole, Mar 21, 2026

"It took two years, but finally, in 2025, Jean Norwood’s dream of turning the parking lot at #MorningstarMissionary Baptist Church in #PortlandOR, into a play area for children and a #FoodGarden with #FruitTrees came true. Working with Norwood to bring her vision to reality was #DepavePortland. Since 2008, the Portland-based nonprofit has been digging up paved surfaces, freeing the trapped soil underneath and #regreening the newly reclaimed space.

"There are an estimated 2 billion parking places in the United States, an area comparable in size to the entire state of Vermont. That figure does not include #sidewalks, schoolyards or other paved surfaces, which, along with #CarParks, trap heat, intensifying the urban #HeatIsland effect in some cases by up to 10 degrees Fahrenheit compared with surrounding areas. '#Asphalt makes your space hotter in the summertime, and colder in the wintertime,' Norwood says.

"When asphalt is removed and the soil beneath is exposed, those dynamics begin to reverse. The ground can absorb and store #carbon, and #rainwater is able to filter into the soil rather than running off into sewers. #Trees and #gardens can be planted that provide shade and a #habitat is created for #birds, #insects and other #wildlife.

"This was Norwood’s dream for the parking lot at Morningstar. Going from concrete to fruit trees, though, takes patience. 'First,' she says, 'there was about six months of planning and submitting requests for permitting.'

"Depave guided Norwood and the church through all of it, even seeking out grants to help cover costs. When it came time to depave the parking lot, volunteers recruited by Depave used crowbars, shovels, bare hands and wheelbarrows to lift out the pavement and daylight the soil beneath. Depave also worked with Morningstar on finding contractors to build the play area and raised #GardenBeds, and on choosing the plants for each newly #regreened space. It’s a process Depave has perfected at more than 82 sites across Portland."

https://www.rewildingmag.com/the-depaving-groups-reclaiming-urban-green-space/

#SolarPunkSunday #MoreGreenCities #GreenerCities #RewildingCities #MoreParksLessParkingLots #WildlifeHabitat