Speaking before its founders and supporters Saturday at the Atlanta Botanical Garden’s yearly Garden of Eden Ball, garden president and CEO Mary Pat Matheson announced a new $40 million capital campaign that will “nourish” existing programs at the garden and plant some new attractions.
The fund drive — the garden’s first since 2005 — will pay for some badly needed repairs, but will also add some new attractions to the 30-acre showpiece.
At the top of the honey-do list is a new roof for the Fuqua Conservatory, which is a complex structure made of glass, steel and waterproof membranes.
Repairs on the roof are already underway and should cost $2.5 million.
A new feature on the wish list: a two-story restaurant, with a dramatic view of Midtown Atlanta.
The as-yet-unnamed restaurant will use many locally sourced foods, including produce from the Botanical Garden’s own edible plants exhibit, and also will serve as classroom area for instruction in cooking and canning.
“You can connect people to plants in so many different ways, and one of the best ways is through our stomachs,” Matheson said.
The architectural firm Perkins and Will is working on designs for the restaurant, she said. Construction crews plan to break ground in January 2015, and have the structure completed by the end of that year.
The capital campaign, called “Nourish and Flourish,” is already more than halfway toward its goal, with $22.5 million in commitments.
Anne Cox Chambers, a trustee and longtime supporter of the garden, has set the pace among donors, pledging $9.6 million to the drive. Her grandson Alex Taylor, executive vice president of Cox Enterprises, was to be present at Saturday’s announcement. Cox, a presenting sponsor of the Atlanta Botanical Garden, is also the parent company of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
In addition to the restaurant, the fund drive will support other new enterprises:
- Landscapers will redesign the children's garden, which hasn't been renovated since 2002.
- The garden's collection of succulents will find a home in a newly created Skyline Garden, with a view of Midtown's city lights.
- The conservation center will be expanded, providing classroom and lab space for interns researching native species and orchid cultivation.
“We want to invest in the next generation of botanists and scientists to make sure that the plants in this world will continue to thrive,” Matheson said.
Expansion of the trail system in the Storza Woods, at the northern end of the garden, began earlier this summer, and those costs also will be covered by the campaign.
The Atlanta Botanical Garden had 425,000 visitors last year, and some 15,000 intrepid scholars studied in the edible garden and at the outdoor kitchen.
Matheson said the burgeoning local food movement could find an in-town laboratory at the Botanical Garden.
“Maybe we’ll be a hub for people who care about food and the farm-to-plate story. The opportunity is tremendous; it excites me to think about that.”
