Sheep Meadow

In 1979, Sheep Meadow, like the rest of Central Park, was in a chronic state of decay after decades of neglect and mismanagement by a fiscally challenged New York City. After a year of restoration, the meadow was green, healthy, and as well-maintained as it is today. That transformation, and the beginning of the revitalization and management of Central Park, was due in large part to four visionaries who called on private citizens to help save it. Together, Richard Gilder, Betsy Barlow Rogers, Gordon Davis, and Bill Beinecke founded the Central Park Conservancy, the first public-private partnership for an urban park, a model now replicated throughout the world. Today, Conservancy members, including private individuals, foundations, and corporations, fund the staff that manages and maintains the park's landscapes and structures, contributing 75 percent of the park's annual operating budget.

New York, New York · United States