Cherry Hill residents can borrow lawn mowers, hedge clippers and even leaf blowers at no cost from a county-run tool library with a pickup location right in town, at the Barry Shaw Memorial Stables on Park Boulevard.
The Camden County Sustainability Center, a 10-acre campus in Blackwood about 10 miles from Cherry Hill, bundles a tool-lending library, a free bike share program, gardening classes, greenhouses, children's workshops and a rentable commercial kitchen. All of it is open to any Camden County resident. An SJ Magazine video tour published Aug. 14 with Commissioner Jonathan Young highlighted the breadth of offerings available to county residents.
Borrow tools, not buy them
The tool library stocks rakes, hedge clippers, lawn mowers, leaf blowers and single-use hardware like screws and bolts. Everything has been donated by the public and refurbished by volunteers.
Cherry Hill residents can pick up and return items at the Barry Shaw Memorial Stables, 1301 Park Blvd., without driving to Blackwood. Hours at both locations are Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Call (856) 374-5195 or check inventory online at sustainablecamdencounty.myturn.com.
"Think about the single mother who wants to start a garden or who can't afford to call professionals to fix something at home," Young said in an August 2022 SJ Magazine feature on the same facility. "She can come down here and get enough tools to remodel the house all because, when people cleaned out their garages in the spring, they brought these items here instead of sending it to the landfill."
Free bikes and gardening know-how
The bike share program repairs donated and unclaimed bicycles, then lends them to residents at no charge. Bikes are available at the Regan Building, 508 Lakeland Road, Blackwood, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The Camden County Certified Gardeners, a 501(c)(3) volunteer group with more than 140 members formerly known as the Master Gardeners of Camden County, offers free classes and programs to county residents. The center's greenhouses grow plants year-round, supplying perennials for community parks and hosting an annual plant sale.
The campus also features a commercial kitchen available for small-business owners to rent, an educational hub with children's workshops and certifications, a 1-acre vineyard, a seed-saving library, a 1-mile walking path, a bamboo forest and a sensory garden designed for people with autism spectrum disorder.
Cherry Hill was the first municipality in Camden County to adopt a municipal sustainability plan, according to the county.
Coming up
The Camden County Certified Gardeners and the Board of Commissioners are hosting a free "Save the Monarch Butterfly" event on Tuesday, Aug. 18, at 6 p.m. at the McLaughlin Norcross Memorial Dell, 1228 Sylvan Dr., Haddon Heights. Families can watch the release of 200 adult monarch butterflies and take home a free milkweed plant.
For current class schedules and commercial kitchen availability, contact the Office of Sustainability at (856) 225-5576 or visit camdencounty.com/service/sustainable-cc.
