$39,695 in Lunenfeld Beautification Grants awarded for 33 projects throughout Buffalo


Gardens Buffalo Niagara is proud to announce the award of $39,695 in Lunenfeld Beautification Grants to support 33 community-driven garden projects across the City of Buffalo in 2026.

This year, Gardens Buffalo Niagara doubled its funding to community groups compared to previous years, made possible by a generous grant from the Buffalo Together Community Response Fund. The Lunenfeld Beautification Grants support a wide range of projects, from community gardens and public green spaces to creative landscape enhancements that reflect the identity and pride of Buffalo’s neighborhoods.

2026 Lunenfeld Beautification Grant Awardees in the East Side Garden Walk Footprint

  • Artspace Buffalo Community Garden

  • Buffalo Freedom Gardens

  • Buffalo United Front

  • Coles House Project

  • Concordia Foundation, 

  • East Lovejoy Coalition of Neighbors Block Club 

  • Floss Love Thy Neighbor (LTN) Block Club

  • Hamlin Park Community & Taxpayers Assoc.

  • Journey's End Refugee Services

  • Metropolitan United Methodist Church

  • Michigan Street African American Heritage Corridor

  • Minnesota Avenue Block Club

  • Muslim Society of Buffalo

  • Norfolk Ave Block Club 

  • Pelion Outdoor Classroom

  • Seneca Babcock Community Block Club

  • St. Adalbert Basilica

  • St. Stanislaus Parish

  • The Research Foundation for SUNY on behalf of the University at Buffalo

  • WECGOD II, Inc



2026 Lunenfeld Beautification Grant Awardees in the Garden Walk Buffalo Footprint

  • Armory Hill Assoc.

  • Ashland Avenue Block Club 1st & 2nd Blocks

  • Claremont Community Block Club

  • Friends of Freedom Park

  • Helping Everyone Achieve Livelihood (HEAL)

  • Kleinhans Community Association

  • Parkside Community AssocSaranac Central Block Association

  • West Side Community Services

  • Westminster Garden Group



2026 Lunenfeld Beautification Grant Awardees in other locations

  • Imagine Community Gardens (The Garden Church)

  • Northwest Buffalo Community Center

  • The West Woodside Ave. Block Club

2026 Lunenfeld Beautification Grant Recipients. Photo by Brian Kreutzer.

Since 2004, the Lunenfeld Beautification Grant program has awarded more than $200,000 to nearly 300 community groups. These projects demonstrate the power of gardening to beautify neighborhoods, strengthen community connections, and contribute to the health of the local ecosystem.

Gardens Buffalo Niagara celebrates the creativity, dedication, and community spirit of this year’s grant recipients and looks forward to seeing these projects grow throughout the season.

Gardens Buffalo Niagara’s work is rooted in its mission to empower vibrant, equitable, and environmentally sustainable communities by sharing gardens that inspire artistic, cultural, and social connection. Through initiatives like Garden Walk Buffalo, America’s largest garden tour; the East Side Garden Walk; Tours of Open Gardens in July; the Garden Art Sale; Urban Farm Day; Conservation Day in Bidwell Park; the Lunenfeld Beautification Grants; Artists in Gardens; and more, the organization fosters a connected and flourishing region where everyone has access to beautiful green spaces, a healthy ecosystem, and the knowledge and resources to sustain and improve them.

Audrey Clark