The Paul Smith Children’s Village is a must-see children’s garden for all ages. The Village’s underlying theme is to teach concepts of sustainability from the past, present and future. In accordance with our commitment to sustainability, the Children’s Village received the LEED Platinum award, the highest level of certification for a green building and landscape from the U.S. Green Building Council. The Children’s Village is currently the only children’s garden in the country to receive this award.
Click here for printable Children’s Village Map
at the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens
The Children’s Village site takes advantage of a pre-existing stone building and stone walls surrounding a courtyard. It was constructed in the early 1930s through the Works Progress Administration (WPA), a Depression-era job training program.
Kids enjoying a program at the Lowe’s Discovery Lab
The building and site were used as a city-wide parks maintenance shop from 1930 – to 2008 when it was converted into the Children’s Village. The building once housed tractors, trucks and snow blowers has now been converted into the Lowes Discovery Lab (named for the Lowe’s Home Improvement store’s support). It is solar heated and solar and wind powered. It also includes a small historic greenhouse.
The three-quarter acre site is filled with numerous specialty, interactive landscapes including a natural wetlands, gravity powered water works, farmers windmill, solar pumps, sculptures, world vegetable garden, prairie plantings, a “Secret Garden,” art/crafts plazas, historic sheep wagon, tipi village, picnic orchard, puppet theater and more. The center of the site features a geodesic
“Village square” amphitheater with seats constructed of recycled concrete and a vertical axis wind generator. Children can play and interact with a wetlands/pond that naturally filters water. Other sustainable lessons include composting, green roof, and many recycled materials.
The theme of the Children’s Village is “Sustainability, past, present and Future.”
The design and construction of the Children’s Village was funded entirely through the non-profit foundation (Friends of the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens) raising approximately $2 million from donors and businesses. It was opened to the public in September of 2008.
Click here for
Upcoming Events at the Children’s Village
Click here to view photo gallery.
Information on facility
use at the Children’s Village
Information on field trips
to the Children’s Village
The Botanic Garden is a division of the City of Cheyenne Parks and Recreation Department.
This is the official web site of the Friends of the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens, a non-profit foundation dedicated to further the goals of the Cheyenne Botanic Gardens.
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