NOVA Parks takes over nature preserve

There’s a new public park in the West End of Alexandria.

NOVA Parks (the Northern Virginia Regional Parks Authority) has officially taken ownership of the Winkler Botanical Preserve between N. Beauregard Street and Interstate 395, the organization reports in a press release.

The 44.6-acre wooded parcel has multiple streams, a lake, a waterfall, and a lodge.

The preserve, located at 5400 Roanoke Ave., was originally created by Catherine Winkler Herman, her daughter Tori Thomas, and the Winkler Foundation in 1979 to protect this green oasis during development of the Mark Center.

NOVA Parks will begin operating the Winkler Botanical Preserve on Oct. 1 and will begin to offer educational programs and summer camps.

As part of the transfer, the Winkler Organization will contribute $1 million to NOVA Parks for capital needs and over $3 million as an operating endowment to support the preserve’s educational programs and new improvements.

The Winkler Organization is giving the City of Alexandria $1 million to advance community engagement and learning resources for city residents and park visitors. It is also giving a $100,000 grant to ALIVE!, a private safety net organization in Alexandria to support basic needs for families living near the Winkler Botanical Preserve.

Catherine Winkler Herman, a philanthropist and environmentalist, established the park in memory of her late husband, real estate developer Mark Winkler.

Their daughter Tori Winkler Thomas, a landscape architect, designed the Winkler Botanical Preserve as a special place to protect native plants, such as swamp rose mallow, and wildlife, such as ospreys and hawks.

The Preserve’s log cabin headquarters, known as Catherine’s Lodge, served as a center for ecological education programs. Catherine Winkler Herman died in 2007 at age 93.

“The enormity of this gift cannot be overstated. Catherine Winkler Herman’s vision and Tori Winkler’s brilliance have created an unparalleled botanical oasis within our highly urbanized Northern Virginia,” said NOVA Parks Chair Cate Magennis Wyatt.

The preserve will be open daily 10 a.m.-4 p.m.