Second meeting minutes

Community Gardens of Arlington
Minutes of the meeting held 20 September 2004


The second meeting of the steering group was held on September 20, 2004, in the Arlington Parks and Recreation building at 717 West Main Street. The meeting came to order at 7:00 pm.

Present were Bonnie Bowman, Josephine Briggs, Angie Brown, Doug Brown, John Darling, Dale Denton, Candy Halliburton, Maud Huber, Amy Kresch, Roy Miliner, Gordon Robertson, Patty Royal, Jean-Marie Smith, Stephen Smith, and Al Vincent. Stephen Smith chaired the meeting and first called for a volunteer to act as secretary. John Darling agreed to fill the role until officers are elected. Stephen requested that everyone fill out a form listing their areas of interest and emphasis. These forms were passed around, completed, and collected. Their future analysis will guide task assignments and subcommittee composition.

Following a brief review of the first meeting, several views were expressed on the topic of a name for this fledgling organization and for the garden under consideration. It was decided to call the group Community Gardens of Arlington and to postpone naming a garden until after a site is agreed on.

The next topic was the following question: Who will the garden serve? Responses ranged widely and included questions about the kind of garden (eg, fruit trees, flowers, produce) and the preferred organizational approach. Bonnie Bowman asked for clarification on this latter point with a grant proposal in mind. Two choices were described: trickle-down (largely centralized planning and management) and community-building (earliest possible outreach to potentially involved groups and individuals for their input and participation). If we favored the latter, she would be able to apply for a particular grant. After some discussion there was general agreement about the virtues of a community-building approach, and Bonnie planned to proceed with a grant proposal on that basis.

John Darling next presented slides of community gardens and briefly described a potential site that he, Jean-Marie Smith, and Stephen Smith have been investigating informally. The site is part of Bob Cooke Park, and it has a number of positive features, including a large, diverse population within walking distance and proximity to Hugh Smith Recreation Center, the New York Senior Center, East Arlington Police Substation, and St. Matthew’s Catholic Church. There is adjacent parking and a water line runs under the potential site. On the negative side, the site is not large and would accommodate only about 50 4x12’ beds.

Park Planner Gordon Robertson noted that the Parks Department would support this site, and Angie Brown called for a vote to accept it as our official garden site. This was carried. Gordon Robertson asked for a formal letter to the Parks Department requesting the site. Acting secretary agreed to draft a letter.

A discussion of various sites in Bob Cooke Park followed. Questions were raised about the initial size and about the ultimate goal, one large garden or a number of smaller ones around the city. There was an informal preference for the latter. Also considered were ideas about plots for various civic groups; ways to encourage senior citizens to become mentors to children and others; the need for an organizational structure; and the importance of having gardeners sign an agreement before participating.

Gordon mentioned that National Semiconductor grant applications were due in about one month, and that their grants can be quite large. Bonnie Bowman proposed to apply there also and requested budget figures. Gordon offered to supply some estimates and noted that the Parks Department would not pay the garden’s water bill. Several people suggested checking with Arlington Water Utilities about the water bill.

Bonnie offered to inform District 5 Council member Lana Wolff on progress so far, and Stephen Smith proposed to talk to Sue Phillips, Park Board member and head of East Arlington Renewal. Stephen Smith then encouraged attendees to pick a subcommittee and begin discussing the next steps in greater detail. Subcommittes and participants are as follows:

Site selection and Development – Gordon Robertson, Dale Denton, Jean-Marie Smith, Al Vincent, John Darling

Funding – Bonnie Bowman, Amy Kresch

Bylaws and Regulations – Candy Halliburton, Roy Miliner, Stephen Smith, Linda Lawler

Marketing and Education – Maude Huber, Jo Briggs, Patty Royal, Angie Brown, Doug Brown

Subcommittee members immediately began planning how to define and carry out their respective duties. The meeting was adjourned at 9:00 pm.

Submitted by John Darling, Acting Secretary