Hopewell Borough Park to receive restoration project

A habitat restoration project is coming to Hopewell Borough Park.

Friends of Hopewell Valley Open Space (FoHVOS), a nonprofit with a mission to preserve land and protect natural resources, is leading the project which will create new native wildflower meadows, help improve stormwater absorption within the Raritan River watershed, help local wildlife, and provide educational opportunities.

In an August letter, Jennifer Rogers, who is the executive director of FoHVOS, said the restoration activities in the park are scheduled to begin the last week of August and the project is called Conservation Connections: Restoring Nature in Hopewell Borough.

They will start with site preparation for the Hopewell Borough Park’s new wildflower meadow.

“In order to provide space and resources for the meadow seeds to germinate next spring, the lawn and weeds in the meadow’s footprint will be treated,” she said. “Expect to see a dead lawn patch in the southern section of the park, near the Phragmites patch. These improvements are designed to create a healthier ecosystem while maintaining a welcoming community space.”

Seeding is expected to take place in the winter for the meadows. FoHVOS would monitor in 2027 the meadow and perform any maintenance.

Additionally, there will be about 10 shrub islands along the sides of the Bedens Brook, which flows through the park. The installation of the shrubs is going to be downstream of the bridge.

Then, upstream and next to the bridge FoHVOS would install streambank practices. Those practices are expected to be coconut coir log and planting, biodegradable erosion control matting with planting, live stake installation, and direct native wildflower installation on the east border of the creek.

There will be bamboo removal on the east corridor, an educational interpretive sign installed near the bridge, and three bat nesting boxes installed near the Bedens Brook.

“Building on existing native planting efforts at Hopewell Elementary School and along Bedens Brook, the project will replace unused lawn spaces with native wildflower meadows and feature streamside plantings that improve biodiversity and help absorb stormwater within the Raritan River watershed,” Rogers said.

“Bat nesting boxes will be installed adjacent to Beden’s Brook to support local wildlife. As part of this project, FoHVOS will provide the HVRSD EcoPTO (a parent organization dedicated to the ecology of the Hopewell Valley schools) with 500 wildflower plugs for their planting project at Hopewell Elementary School.”

The project is funded through New Jersey American Water (NJAW)’s American Water Charitable Foundation, which made an announcement in April awarding FoHVOS a 2026 Water and Environment grant.

FoHVOS was awarded $25,000 by the foundation for the restoration project at Hopewell Borough Park, which is located on South Greenwood Avenue in Hopewell Borough.