The Parks Civic Support Program provides individuals and organizations the opportunity to commemorate a person, place or event with the donation of a bench or tree to one of our parks. Your donation will leave a lasting legacy and contribute to the beautification of public spaces in our community.
Current Program Status
The Parks Civic Support Program for the 2025 season is now CLOSED.
Application process
The application form for the 2026 season program will be available when the program opens in early Spring.
Public Gardens:
If you are interested in donating a bench at the Public Gardens, please download and complete this separate application form and email it to Sean Street at streets@halifax.ca.
Program Inquiries
If you have any inquiries regarding the Parks Civic Support Program, please consult our frequently asked questions below. If you still have a question after reviewing this webpage, please call 311 for further assistance.
Frequently asked questions
- Can you provide me with a list of municipal parks?
We have a list of preferred parks identified on the new application form, which will be available for the 2025 season. These parks have been reviewed and identified by Parks staff as suitable to accommodate your donation. If you would like to request a park that is not on this list, you can visit our interactive map to view all of our park locations. Please note that the selected park and the location within the park are both subject to the review and approval of Parks staff.
- How many characters can I include on a bench?
The number of characters you can put on a plaque are as follows:
a. Plaques for wooden benches have a maximum amount of 167 characters including spaces and punctuation.
b. Plaques for metal benches have a maximum amount of 100 characters including spaces and punctuation.- How can I pay for my donation?
Municipal staff will contact you after your application is approved to take purchase information over the phone.
- How long will it take for my donated item to be installed?
Installation timelines are subject to our supplier’s timelines and resources. Once we receive payment from the applicant, on average, applicants can expect a 4 month timeline for wooden benches and a 6–8 month timeline for metal benches. Timelines are subject to change based on inventory and availability.
- Can I be on-site during installation?
Because installation takes place on an active construction site with heavy equipment, we do not allow applicants to be on-site during installation.
- My bench has gone missing or is damaged. What happened?
There are times when a bench is damaged and needs to be taken into the shop for repairs. Or in some cases, an event is occurring, and the bench must be temporarily moved. There may be situations where a bench needs to be relocated due to construction or park maintenance. We will do our best to inform you of these types of situations in advance.
- What types of benches and trees are available for donation?
We have both wooden and metal benches available for donation. Photos of each type of bench can be found at the bottom of this webpage. Trees are from the following list and subject to availability and capacity:
• Red Maple (Acre Rubrum)
• Red Oak (Quercus Rubra)
• Hackberry (Celtis Occidentalis)
• Northern Catalpa (Catalpa Speciosa)
• Ginko (Ginko Biloba)- Can I make a donation to the Public Gardens under the Parks Civic Support Program?
Yes, we accept bench donations to the Public Gardens. However, the options are different than other municipal parks. We do not accept tree donations and only existing benches can be chosen for donation. Your donation includes the installation of a plaque on an existing bench and maintenance of the bench for a period of 10 years, with the option to renew.
If you would like to donate a bench to the Public Gardens, please fill out this application form and email it to Sean Street at streets@halifax.ca.
Wooden bench
Metal bench