"Two Great Cities In Bloom"

Click here to watch the TV18 video interview!

America In Bloom judges evaluated both cities; results due in October 2008

The America In Bloom contest brought many people together in both Lafayette and West Lafayette. Each city had a committee of volunteers collecting information from neighborhood groups, media, city officials and business owners about their efforts in the eight judging categories. The contest gave the groups a structured way to look at each of these aspects of quality of life.

To help the judges remember highlights from the tours, and to document many of the community efforts made, each committee created a book of Community  Pride.  The judges' books included maps, city ordinances and community brochures. The text and photos from the books can be viewed here on the website.  In addition, the full West Lafayette book can be viewed at the West Lafayette Public Library and the complete Lafayette book is available for viewing at the downtown branch of the Tippecanoe County Library.

The exercise of collecting information about environmental initiatives, heritage preservation and community involvement has already helped the committees learn  about each city's strengths and weaknesses. The judges came to evaluate the cities in late June and both groups reported that the tours went well with several delightful surprises as citizens came out in a big way to welcome the evaluators. Details about the judges' tour is on this website under each city's summary.

Results of the America In Bloom competition will be announced at an educational symposium October 2-4, in Columbus, Ohio. Representatives from each city will attend and bring back a wealth of ideas from other communities, as well as a detailed report from the judges.  Information about the conference is available on-line at www.AmericaInBloom.org.

Regardless of the contest outcome, both Lafayette In Bloom and West Lafayette in Bloom groups learned that we have many reasons to be proud of our "Two Great Cities In Bloom."

Since 2001, America in Bloom has encouraged communities from across the United States to improve the quality of life for residents and visitors. In the process of competing, we’ll rally citizens together to make our cities more attractive and document why we consider Lafayette and West Lafayette two of America’s cleanest, most heritage rich, attractive and environmentally healthy cities. America In Bloom judges our cities on progressive both in terms of physical beauty and community participation.

Lafayette and West Lafayette fall into different size categories so we will not compete against each other. Judges will come in late June to evaluate our neighborhoods, commercial areas and public spaces in the following categories:   Floral Displays,  Environmental Awareness, Landscaped Areas, Urban Forestry, Heritage Preservation, Tidiness, Turf and Groundcovers,  & Community Involvement. Details about these categories are below.

The evaluators will be considering the level of involvement by everyone in the community, including youth volunteers, neighborhood groups, businesses, and municipal efforts. Cities receive opportunities for state and national visibility and valuable information from the judges’ detailed report with suggestions and observations.

Lafayette In Bloom and West Lafayette in Bloom are city-specific committees to engage community involvement, prepare for the judges' visit, and to gather information and photography for a required Community Pride book.  

The Chamber of Commerce Council’s Community Appearance Task Force (CATF) is facilitating the contest entry for both cities. To learn more about the CATF, contact co-chairs: Tena Woenker (tena3@comcast.net; or twoenker@purdue.edu); Tracy Walder (northneighbors@aol.com) or Chamber staff member Lauren Hale, lhale@lwldc.org. Other CATF members include: Linda Erwin, Ann Skadberg, Arlan Stavenheim, Cyndi Bodin, Eileen Booth, and Larry Rose.