Cleveland officials broke ground Monday on a new cultural garden paying tribute to African-Americans. It's been a long time coming. But as ideastream's Amy Hansen reports, the project's organizers still have a ways to go.
Plans to build an African-American cultural garden along MLK Boulevard began nearly 40 years ago. Big names in Cleveland's African-American community including Call & Post publisher William O. Walker and history professor Booker Tall - pushed to create the garden. But as Mayor Frank Jackson pointed out at a groundbreaking ceremony yesterday, progress was slow.
"Just because you say something, as us public officials have found out, doesn't mean it's gonna happen right then, right," Jackson said.
Officials say a lack of focus and fundraising problems contributed to the long delay. The focus now will be on the heritage of Africa, including the use of blue stone in the garden's design to represent slaves' journey crossing the Atlantic Ocean.
But funding continues to plague the project. Officials still need to raise roughly $1.5 million to complete the garden.