RBS Terrace Garden and Hurricane Sandy
The USA Headquarters of th
e Royal Bank of Scotland is in Stamford CT. Their building features a massive third story terrace, facing east, out to the Atlantic Ocean.
The Project
In 2011, TGC built a kitchen garden on the terrace, providing produce daily to the up-scale cafeterias operated by RBS’ food-services contractor, Restaurant Associates. TGC has worked with many chefs and restaurants who want the most local, healthy food. The innovative garden at RBS Stamford is in many ways typical. The chefs were trained by TGC to grow and harvest on the terrace, right outside the kitchen door. The chefs easily maintained the garden ever since – easy because of the reduced labor required (no weeding, very little water).
The Lesson
In October 2012, the very existence of the RBS garden was profoundly tested as Hurricane Sandy barreled along the New England coastline. Its impact was devastating.
Several days after Sandy hit, TGC contacted Jason di Chiara of Restaurant Associates, to learn if the garden survived. Jason’s reply, “There were no problems. We just drained the water from the containers ahead of Sandy, picked them up, and moved them inside. No losses.”
Many gardens fail because they lack flexibility. At RBS, a more traditional garden (e.g. raised beds) would have been completely destroyed. Yet, the RBS team were able to simply move the garden indoors. A day after the worst hurricane in the area’s history, the garden site was in operation again.
The Keys:
- Expect the unexpected, Nature is ALWAYS involved in our lives;
- When engaged people care about something, they will protect it;
- TGC always emphasizes flexible and sustainable solutions.