The Michigan Nursery and Landscape Association (MNLA) will honor Oakland County this week with its coveted Community Landscape Beautification Award. The MNLA selected Oakland County because of its continuous efforts to plant wildflower beds to enhance the county government campus for employees, visitors, and wildlife. A ceremony will take place at 10 a.m. today at the Oakland County Public Works Building at 1 Public Works Dr. in Waterford.
"Our government campus is our home away from home-we want it to be a memorable place to visit," County Executive L. Brooks Patterson said. "We are honored that the Michigan Nursery and Landscape Association will recognize Oakland County and the hard work of our facilities management team performs to keep our government campus beautiful."
Deputy County Executive/CIO Phil Bertolini, who oversees the Facilities Management Department, said that Oakland County's groundskeeping crews have done an outstanding job implementing Patterson's vision for a government campus that is both beautiful and sustainable.
"Everyone in the Facilities Management Department really bought into the idea of enhancing our government campus with natural flora," Bertolini said. "It's easy to implement the county executive's vision when you have excellent groundskeeping crews."
This award belongs as much to Patterson's vision as the Facilities Management Department employees who committed to that vision, Facilities Management Director Art Holdsworth said.
"Every day our facilities management team makes a real difference and takes great pride in the work they do," Holdsworth said.
Oakland County is among 14 recipients statewide of the annual Landscape Beautification Award, only three of which are in Southeast Michigan. This achievement recognizes the excellence in improving the physical and aesthetic environment as well as promoting positive environmental impacts.
For additional information, go to MNLA.org.
Published: Fri, May 17, 2019
