Founded in 2015, the Kokomo Beautiful initiative invites residents and organizations in Howard County to take ownership of our community by planting flowers and maintaining public garden areas. An initiative of the Greater Kokomo Economic Development Alliance, this campaign is made possible through partnerships with the City of Kokomo, Lybrook Landscaping, Howard County, Wildcat Guardians, Master Gardeners of Howard County, and Sunbelt Rentals.

This year’s Keep Kokomo Beautiful campaign will include one event in April and two in May. Susan Alexander, the Alliance’s manager of downtown creative placemaking, encourages advocacy groups, teams from businesses and organizations, and families and individuals to participate in the events.

The 2025 campaign kicked off on Thursday, April 3 with flower basket planting at Lybrook Landscaping. More than 60 volunteers from all over the community gathered to plant 1,112 flower baskets and 1,664 flower pots for sidewalk gardens, parks, and alleyways.

The planting resumes in May as volunteers will gather for two workdays. First up will be annual planting at the City Hall Gazebo, 100 S. Union St., from Saturday, May 10. Then, on Wednesday, May 14, volunteers will plant the downtown container and alley gardens, meeting on the Courthouse Square at the corner of Main and Sycamore streets.

Why it matters

The flowers planted as a part of Keep Kokomo Beautiful add natural beauty to the downtown area, which creates a vibrant atmosphere for guests to explore everything downtown Kokomo has to offer.

Locals are not the only people who are attracted by the flowers! Visitors from near and far enjoy seeing these colorful blooms adorning downtown streets and sidewalks. As a result of Keep Kokomo Beautiful, downtown Kokomo appears vibrant in the eyes of the community and national-facing media such as the Kokomo episode of John McGivern’s Main Streets.

Get planting!

Volunteer for one or more of these events below.

New in 2025 is the Sidewalk Garden Club, where businesses and organizations can adopt a sidewalk garden along several walkways in downtown Kokomo. Contributors can display their pride for the heart of their community through their sponsorship.

Each sponsor will have a metal plaque staked into one of the gardens that will be available all year long. This investment will support purchasing plant stock for the Keep Kokomo Beautiful campaign, planting it, and administering volunteer engagement.