Building Sustainable Urban Landscapes with Cleveland Metroparks
- LaRaie Zimm
- Sep 10
- 2 min read
Cleveland Metroparks has long been committed to protecting and enhancing the urban and natural environment of the Greater Cleveland area. To further this mission, they envisioned a web-based tool that could empower urban landscape architects, city planners, arborists, community developers, and residents to make informed, data-driven decisions about tree planting.
Breakthrough Technologies partnered with Cleveland Metroparks to bring this vision to life. Leveraging our experience in building environmental decision-support tools for organizations like the Morton Arboretum, we developed a custom Drupal-based tree selector tool with four powerful components:
Tree Species Data Portal – Comprehensive details about tree species, helping users select the right trees for specific locations and conditions.
Native Plant Nursery Information Page – A hub for supporting biodiversity, featuring local nursery information and a grower portal for updating live inventory.
Plant Communities – The plant communities in Northeast Ohio are represented by six major types. This tool helps users locate the closest plant community and find trails to explore these ecosystems within Cleveland Metroparks.
Regional Plant Community Mapping Tool – A visual guide to plant communities across Greater Cleveland, providing an ecological context for tree-planting efforts.
The tool’s mobile-responsive design ensures easy access on any device, empowering professionals and residents alike to plan sustainable landscapes from wherever they are.
This collaboration reflects how technology and local expertise can converge to create lasting environmental impact. By connecting planners and community members with critical data and resources, Cleveland Metroparks is strengthening urban biodiversity, supporting native plant use, and fostering greener neighborhoods.
👉 Learn more about the project and its community impact: