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HomeMy WebLinkAboutColleyville Community Garden Advisory Committee Agenda Packet - 05-23-2019City of Colleyville                                                                                    Page 1 Colleyville Community  Garden Advisory  Committee Agenda City Hall 100 Main Street Colleyville, Texas 76034 817. 503.1000 www.colleyville.com Thursday, May 23, 2019 8:30 a.m. Executive Conference Room Third Floor – City Hall  1.CALL TO ORDER 2. APPROVAL OF MINUTES  April 11, 2019 3.REGULAR AGENDA ITEMS    3a Discuss Implementation of Timeline and the Big Dig Date    3b Subcommittee Updates    3c Mission and Vision Statement Exercise 4.ADJOURNMENT I hereby certify this agenda was posted on City Hall bulletin boards Friday, May  17, 2019 by 5:00 p.m. Christine Loven, TRMC City Secretary A quorum of the Colleyville City Council and/or any other Colleyville Board,  Commission, or Committee may be in attendance at this meeting. Any matter on this agenda may, at the discretion of the governing body, be  opened for public comment and discussion. If you plan to attend this public meeting and have a disability that requires special  accommodations, please advise the City Secretary at least 48 hours in advance at  817.503.1133, and reasonable accommodations will be made to assist you.   MINUTES Colleyville Community Garden Advisory Committee Thursday April 10, 2019 - 8:30am Colleyville City Hall Executive Meeting Room Call to order 8:30am by Chairman, Natalie Genco Attendees Linda Newton, Pam Buie, Natalie Genco, Rich Hendler, Amanda Novak, Uma Lal City Officials: Lisa Escobedo, Adrienne Lothery Resignations Lisa reported that Mary Ramatowski and Amy Putnam have officially resigned from the board. Natalie mentioned that Amy realized she didn’t have the time to make most meetings and didn’t want to cause us to miss quorum. The city will send out a notice looking for 2 new Community Garden committee members. It was discussed that if we have more than 2 applications, we would like to invite anyone else interested in helping with the garden to chair or join committees. New Quorum Our new quorum will be 4 committee members due to the recent resignations. Approval of February 2019 Minutes Amanda moved to approve and Linda seconded. The minutes were approved. Bylaws Bylaws were briefly discussed. Linda made a motion to approve our bylaws as written. Rich seconded. The motion carried. Lisa mentioned that when the city approves our bylaws, we will become official. Update on garden tours Beds - Natalie mention that after visiting other community gardens, we are leaning towards using cedar boards for our beds. Everyone agreed this would be better and cooler than using Windsor stone. Uma asked if some of our beds would be raised. Natalie stated that we discussed this during our tour and we thought a combination would be nice with taller beds in the middle of the garden. Uma suggested we consider all raised beds. We decided we would wait on this decision to see how much money and man power we get. Uma suggested we build a demo bed and we all agreed this is a good idea. This will help us understand what materials work best. It was suggested we build our bed either in McPherson Park or in an inconspicuous area in the city. Overall - It was reported that overall the garden tours were inspiring and we got a lot of good ideas. 6 stones provided us with warnings of things not to do. Their garden is on pause and the land is up for sale. The Coppell Community Garden produces a great deal of food and especially from their fruit trees. Landscaping - Natalie mentioned that the NR Hills community garden had beautiful Lady Banks Roses on trellises in the corners in the garden. They were spectacular even in the winter. This would be nice for our garden. They also had a flowering tree in the middle of the garden. This might be nice to add somewhere in our garden. Composting - The Coppell community garden believed making your own compost was important. They use rainwater to make compost tea. They have a “leaf corral” that area landscapers donate to. They need a place to drop their leaves and chipped tree trimmings so this works out well. Amanda suggested we do a leaf coral like N. Richland Hills has. It is more concealed. Garden Pests - Natalie mentioned that the worst problem with garden pests is rats. It is difficult to keep them out as they can climb fences. The Coppell Community Garden recommends getting traps. Amanda suggested live traps to catch and release. Donations Amanda suggested setting a required food donation amount for those adopting a plot in the Colleyville Community Garden. Natalie mentioned that the prior community garden board (before it was a city committee) discussed this and decided it would not be a good idea. This is because making sure people are donating the required amounts is difficult to police. She mentioned that the N. Richland Hills Community garden has voluntary donation and this works quite well and doesn’t require weighing the food. Lynda suggested we first get the garden started and then decide if we want to require a donation amount. Natalie mentioned that our orchard will not belong to any one gardener and that it should produce a great deal of fruit that we can donate. Amanda suggested that perhaps we can have some beds be designated just for donation. Soil Testing Linda suggested we have the soil tested in McPherson Park for contaminants. Natalie suggested if we are getting it tested, we may also want to test it to see what amendments it needs. Natalie will contact Howard Garrett to see what soil testing he recommends. Weed Stop Natalie asked if the city will allow us to put plastic over the garden site in McPherson Park over the summer to naturally kill the grass. Lisa said we will likely be able to but we will need to put a sign out saying something like “Coming Soon, Community Garden”. This will also help build excitement about the garden. We can add a link to our website and ask for people interested in helping or adopting a plot to go here for more info. Lisa mentioned that we will need to measure and stake out the site before putting down plastic. Water Well Linda asked if we found out whether there was a water well in McPherson Park. Lisa said there is one but it is not working and would cost a great deal, around $3,000, to get it inspected. We decided it might be better to get the cistern working to collect rainwater. Adrienne reported that the old cistern has a mosquito problem and rather than repair it, the city would like to get a new one with mosquito protection and install it to collect rainwater from the dairy barn near the community garden. Promotion It was suggested we contact homeowner associations near The Colleyville Community Garden to let them know the garden is in the works. Dividing Tasks Amanda passed out copies of the organizational chart she put together based on our needs as we have discussed. We went over each position in the chart and what it entails. The positions are: 1.Administration (Amanda volunteered to do this) 2.Marketing (Linda volunteered to do this) 3.Fundraising (Natalie volunteered to do this) 4.Education and Event Planning (If we don’t find anyone, Amanda, Natalie and Pam volunteered to help). 5.Volunteer and Garden Engagement (Rich will chair and Uma will help) Volunteers - Natalie suggested Rich might be a good fit for the position of sourcing volunteers as he was interested in doing PR. Rich agreed to take on this position but said he will need help. Rich will also help Amanda with confirming relationships with city and access to the storage shed. Mission Statement - Amanda suggested we all work on finalizing our mission statement. Natalie suggested this be done by email to help speed things up and everyone agreed. We can also work on our adopt a plot agreement via email. Education and Event Planning - Amanda said she can do this as her job of administration ends if we don’t find someone else to do it. Natalie and Pam volunteered to help with this also. Uma and Pam - Natalie asked Uma and Pam what area they are most interested in helping with. Both said they don’t particularly want to be in charge but said they would help anywhere. 3-D Rendering - Natalie mentioned that we had a prior committee member who is still interested in helping but is not a Colleyville resident. She had volunteered to do a 3-D rendering for us. Natalie asked if she could invite her to our meetings. Lisa said that is fine as the public is allowed to attend. 501c3 Discussion We discussed whether we need a 501c3. We decided that we probably would not need a 501c3 as donations could go straight to the city. Natalie mentioned that she started a 501c3 for another purpose but we could use it if someone requires us to have a 501c3. We decided that if we did need a 501c3, it should be one with the sole purpose of supporting the community garden. Tarrant County Master Gardener Project We decided that we would like to get this designation. Natalie reported that she has already been working with the Tarrant County Master Gardeners and they are supportive of our project and waiting to see how they can help us. She will ask what is required for this designation. Special projects We discussed outlining special projects to see if we can get the boy scouts or other groups to sponsor them in advance of the Big Dig date. Natalie suggested the compost bins or arbors could be built in advance. Subcommittees Amanda mentioned that if we form subcommittees, they may want to meet more frequently to get things done and give a report at our monthly meetings. Next Meeting Date Our next meeting will be on Thursday, May 9, at 8:30am Irrigation Lisa mentioned that irrigation will only take 2-3 weeks to install once we are ready for it. She said that the city will do it in house and they have an awesome irrigation person. Implementing projects Adrienne said that she hoped that by early summer, we would be ready to start implementing projects for the community garden. This will require our design plan be 100% finalized. Operating Hours We briefly discussed if we should consider posting operating hours and what they should be. We will determine this later. Adjourned Linda moved to adjourn and Rich seconded. The meeting was adjourned at 10:07 am Minutes submitted by Chairman, Natalie Genco City of Colleyville Page 1 Colleyville Community Garden Advisory Committee Agenda Briefing City Hall 100 Main Street Colleyville, Texas 76034 www.colleyville.com Agenda Number 3a Agenda Date 5/23/2019 Number Type Regular Agenda Items Department Parks and Recreation Title Discuss Implementation of Timeline and the Big Dig Date Attachments 1.2019 CCG Implementation Plan with Milestones A Novak 4.30.19 2019 Colleyville Community Garden Implementation Plan Milestones Approve Bylaws, Subcommittee Tasks Outlined Approve Implementation Plan, Start Mission/Vision work Approve final garden layout, budget, fundraising plan; Update on pending site details Approve Big Dig Event Planning Outline, Adopt a Plot, Policies & Procedures, Marketing Plan Implement Marketing Plan; Fundraising Update; Confirm site prep schedule by city; Confirm sources for Volunteers Site Prep by City Complete (Irrigation), Fundraising Complete, Open Adopt-A-Plot application; Volunteer Update All Big Dig Details Finalized The Big Dig 11 Apr 9 May 13 Jun 11 Jul 8 Aug 12 Sep 12 Oct 9 Nov City of Colleyville Page 1 Colleyville Community Garden Advisory Committee Agenda Briefing City Hall 100 Main Street Colleyville, Texas 76034 www.colleyville.com Agenda Number 3b Agenda Date 5/23/2019 Number Type Regular Agenda Items Department Parks and Recreation Title Subcommittee Updates Attachments 1.Detailed CCG Subcommittee Tasks A Novak 4.30.2019 Colleyville Community Garden Detailed 2019 Implementation Tasks by Subcommittee Administration - Amanda Novak (Lead) 1. Organize garden visits in local cities – Done. 2. Formally adopt by-laws – Done 3. Create detailed 2019 Implementation Timeline – Draft sent 4/30/19 – Approve at May Mtg 4. Finalize Mission Statement & Vision for CCG – Early May 2019 ○At May meeting – give handout with 4 questions and compile via email or after the meeting ○Send draft documents by May 15th via email – Approve at June ○Vote to adopt at June Meeting 5. Create Phased Implementation Plan over next 3 years (align with budget) – May 2019 6. Finalize garden layout (Formal Landscape Design and 3-D Rendering) – May 2019 ○Determine which beds will be raised higher (inside rows?) ○Consider adding interest by changing the middle row of beds (NRH examples) ○Finalize design for composting areas (functional but hidden) ○Additional elements such as benches, arbors, etc. for Fundraising group. ■Select arbor and bench designs now to ensure cohesiveness when installed ○Confirm whether site needs any grading ○Finalize raised bed construction plan ■Committee will build a sample bed – Sept 2019 ○Butterfly Garden layout (Amanda will design detailed layout of plants) 7. Confirm relationship with city & access to property – June 2019 ○Access to tool storage area ■Change lock to combination, ensure we have working utilities (water, electricity, etc.) ○Rainwater collection ■Cistern update ■Determine if we can install other rain collection near the garden (will cut down on long-term water bill burden on the city) ○City water irrigation installation ■(Per Lisa it will take 2-3 weeks, in-house irrigation specialist) ■Goal: Installed by Sept 15, 2019 ○Site grading, if needed. ○Ongoing City Agreement ensuring above items 8. Develop Policies & Procedures document – June 2019 ○Start with a draft like CFM’s 9. Finalize adopt-a-plot agreement – June 2019 ○Start with draft shared by Natalie 10.Work with Fundraising to finalize supply list for Big Dig and CCG in general. – July 2019 ○Based on cedar raised bed design ○Additional elements ○Decorative plant material ○Fruit Trees ○Berry bushes & rambler beds ○Butterfly/Pollinator Garden Plant Materials – Novaks are happy to fund this garden ○Storage within the shed – tool organization? 11.Site Preparation A Novak 4.30.2019 ○Weed eradication options (sheeting this summer?) ○Soil Testing – Natalie was going to check with Howard Garrett ○City installs irrigation 12.Finalize produce donation element ○Connect with 6 Stones, North Texas Food Bank, Grace ○See who would be willing to do a weekly pick-up at CCG beginning in June 2020 Fundraising – Natalie Genco (Lead) 1. Determine budget needs for next 3 fiscal years 2. Finalize our decision on the 501c3 - we all agree it is likely not necessary. – Done. 3. Understand the city process for receiving donations – share with Amanda to put into Policies & Procedures 4. Determine sponsorship structure (tiered giving program, inaugural sponsors, etc.) 5. Ensure budget transparency to members of the Advisory Committee, City Council, etc. 6. Ensure committee members are given a budget before purchasing supplies 7. Connect with local businesses once we know what we will need to solicit donations – Help Amanda with supply list 8. Request donation of supplies or funds for supplies from local Colleyville merchants first (tools, cardboard, stones, dirt, mulch, etc.). Marketing – Linda Newton (Lead), Amanda Novak Determine and implement marketing & communication plan for The Big Dig & Adopt-a-plot release. Develop Web content for city-hosted page Social media set up - Public Facebook Coordinate with city to get CCG info into weekly newsletters, city FB posts, etc. Connect with local high school marketing students for help with promotional items (social media posts, flyers, etc.) Create ongoing marketing annually (i.e. plots available, education events open to public, etc.) Educational Event Planning – Amanda Novak (Lead), Pam Buie, Natalie Genco Initially, organize The Big Dig event for fall 2019. Develop a schedule for the Big Dig and work with Volunteer Engagement to ensure everyone has a “job” Coordinate with City regarding extra needs for the Big Dig (i.e. ATV to move supplies). Develop and maintain “passive programming” via on-site signage (i.e. pollinator education) Organize ongoing educational events for gardeners, schools, etc. Volunteer & Gardener Engagement – Rich Hendler (Lead), Uma Lal Determine volunteer needs for the Big Dig (work closely with Event Planning group) Contact sources for volunteers Communicate with volunteers (Sign Up Genius?) After Big Dig, organize Days of Service with outside groups Plan events to foster a sense of community among gardeners (i.e. potlucks, harvest dinner, plant exchanges, etc.) A Novak 4.30.2019 Special projects could be completed ahead of time o Compost bins/ enclosures o Arbors o Rain barrel installation City of Colleyville Page 1 Colleyville Community Garden Advisory Committee Agenda Briefing City Hall 100 Main Street Colleyville, Texas 76034 www.colleyville.com Agenda Number 3c Agenda Date 5/23/2019 Number Type Regular Agenda Items Department Parks and RecreationTitle Mission and Vision Statement Exercise