Images from Whitehall’s Pollinator Garden, created on a reclaimed stormwater lot in Lexington County with help from a Columbia Green Community Grant.

The West Buchanan site in March 2026 when we began exploring possibilities for a project desigen

Rendering of the plan for the Buchanan Street Demonstration project.

Neighborhood Volunteerism starts early! NSGC friends.

The Story Begins…

In 2015, Tropical Storm Joaquin dumped 20” of water on Columbia, flooding entire sections of the city. It was devastating. Hundreds of homes in low-lying areas across the Midlands were destroyed and subsequently condemned for rebuilding. FEMA bought many of these homes and sold a number of them back to the City of Columbia, Richland and Lexington Counties.

Neighborhoods that lost homes can attest that many of these lots have become eyesores and are treated as though abandoned, belonging to no one. The Whitehall Neighborhood in Lexington County lost 19 homes in that flood.

A Story Sparks an Idea

In 2025, the Whitehall Garden Club obtained permission from Lexington County to reclaim a lot to turn it into a pollinator garden. They applied to Columbia Green for one of our Community Grants, and with that funding and a lot of volunteer efforts, were able to transform a vacant lot into a beautiful neighborhood garden with open access for the community.

In a meeting in January of 2026, Columbia Green had a chance to tell this story to Mayor Daniel Rickenmann, who instantly realized its potential. He knew that together, we could reclaim stormwater lots owned by the City of Columbia and turn them into neighborhood gardens and greenspaces. “Show her the lots!” he said to our friends at Public Works.

So, they did.

Building Partnerships

Columbia Green then kicked into action and did what we do best: we brought together our partners who know how to get stuff done. First, we reached out to our friends at the Gills Creek Watershed Association. Next, we talked with newly-elected City Councilman-at-large, Sam Johnson, who wanted to mobilize youth and re engage neighborhood groups. Together, we hatched an idea that turned into a partnership that turned into a plan that turned into action. And so we we became a collaborative.

Our first project is to renovate three adjoining lots on West Buchanan Drive and transform it into a habitat for insects, birds, wildlife and humans to demonstrate a new approach to urban land management.

Introducing the Neighborhood Stormwater Greenspace Collaborative. Coming to a neighborhood near you.

The Collaborative hosted an afterwork cleanup event in June that brought out almost 40 people from Columbia Green, Gills Creek Watershed, and the neighborhood. Yay!