O'Malley cast the Middle Branch restoration project as part of the broader effort to step up environmental protections.
"Instead of looking at this area as a dump, we imagined what it could be," he said.
Dixon, a former elementary school teacher, urged students at the event to write a paper about its significance and asked their teacher to send her copies. She said the project is an example of what could make Maryland an example to other states.
"What we need to do is not kick off Earth Week, we should make Earth Day every day, and make it a part of our everyday living," she said. "We're taking a great dump, can you imagine, a great dump, and we're turning it into a great jewel, a great jewel that's going to benefit all of us."
The communities surrounding Brooklyn and Curtis Bay are thrilled with the change, said Carol Eshelman, executive director of the Brooklyn and Curtis Bay Coalition.
"We are so excited to have reached this stage in the development of this unique urban park," she said. "The Masonville Cove Nature Center will provide Brooklyn and Curtis Bay residents waterfront access for the first time in decades."
bradley.olson@baltsun.com
