The Mayor
ROCHELLE ROBINSON will start planting tomatoes, peppers, basil, eggplant, and squash.
Spring has officially sprung, Easter is here, and I am so thankful for all the things that come with this season. After a year of being inside, social distancing, and a long cold winter, I am so glad to see the green come back and some flowers in bloom! As I anticipate the beauty that comes along with the spring season, I can’t keep my mind from wandering toward all the beautification projects and programs that we have on the horizon in the City of Douglasville. Much of the success we’ve had in that area can be attributed to the successes of our Keep Douglasville Beautiful (KDB) program. Since April is Keep America Beautiful Month, I decided to highlight some of the exciting programs that the City’s Keep America Beautiful affiliate, Keep Douglasville Beautiful, has in store. Once again, our Keep Douglasville Beautiful program is bringing a farmer’s market to our downtown. I am so excited that this program will be back, especially after the success it had last year. We have so many local vendors who will be participating this year. There will be beautiful flowers, delicious homegrown vegetables, farm fresh eggs, and so much more! After a difficult year economically, we are so thankful we can support our small, local businesses. This season, we have a new partner with Georgia Fresh for Less, a Wholesome Wave Georgia program which will allow us to double SNAP dollars. For every $1 spent using food stamps, the market will be able to match $1 for free. This is a huge opportunity for us to increase food accessibility for people who are struggling financially. Make sure you come out on Tuesday, May 4th and check out all the wonderful vendors who will be working with us through the spring and summer. Another project I am so excited about is our Community Garden located at Mill Village Park. Over the winter, some improvements were made such as fencing, built on MLK Day and an orchard planted on Arbor Day that really brings out the best of the garden! Currently at the garden, we’re preparing for warm season crops. There are radishes, carrots, spinach, onions, mustard, and beans in the ground. The great news is that the radishes, mustard, and beans will be ready for harvest within the next six weeks. We’ve also planted two apple trees, two plum trees, a fig tree, a pear tree, and three blueberry bushes. I am so thrilled about all the fresh food we have at the garden! We are so thankful to the Atlanta Local Food Initiative (ALFI) for providing the trees to us through a grant. Once the soil warms up a bit and the days are longer, we
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Chapel Hill News & Views COMMUNITY
The great news is that the garden is a free resource for the community! We are so fortunate to have a volunteer from AmeriCorps VISTA, a federal volunteer service, who maintains the day to day tasks of the garden. The harvest, however, is meant to be done by YOU! The neighbors. The goal of the garden is to provide fresh vegetables for anyone who wants them, so there are no fees. We want the garden to be a welcoming space, where people can hang out, eat some fresh vegetables, and eventually gather with their family and friends. You will also find a Blessing Box at the garden that was just installed. It is maintained by Living Life with Purpose, and is filled with non-perishables, baby supplies, and books. All these things are free to those who need them. It brings me so much joy that we can bless our community through both the garden and the Blessing Box! Earlier this year, KDB launched its newest campaign: “Go Green Douglasville!” This campaign focuses on encouraging more reuse, reducing, and recycling! Choosing to use reusable items like cloth hand towels instead of paper towels, canvas totes, instead of plastic grocery bags, or stainless-steel water bottles instead of single-use plastic bottles, can make a big impact. There are a ton of resources online that you can search to learn how to better reuse items and what the benefits are. One of the things that Keep Douglasville has communicated to me is that consumers can save up to $1,400 per year by switching to a reusable water bottle! I didn’t believe it at first, but if you drink the recommended eight glasses of water per day, that can add up to $1,400 of disposable water bottles. As for the reusable bags, they are so much more environmentally friendly. Americans discard approximately 1.8 billion bags every week. Yes, every week! A plastic bag can take anywhere from 15 to 1,000 years to decompose. In a landfill, where they are not in the ideal environment to break down naturally, it can take longer. Not to mention they are unsightly when they are flying around town on a windy day. Each time you make the decision to switch to a reusable water bottle or use a reusable bag, you make such a big difference to the environment! It really is up to us as residents of this great city to make a difference and create an impact that matters in beautifying our city! As we consider how to help improve the beauty of our hometown, there are many events coming up where you can get involved in reusing, recycling, and beautifying our city. On April 22nd, we are planning a big Earth Day Cleanup Event. Individuals and groups are invited to join KDB throughout the City and County (through a partnership with Keep Douglas County Beautiful and Georgia Highlands College) to pick up litter. There will be scheduled pickup times and locations throughout the day that anyone can join, or you can pick up on your own! You can even partner with your Neighborhood Litter Brigade as well! You can find more information about this innova-
tive new program on our website douglasvillega. gov/litterbrigade. Keep Douglasville Beautiful also has their Spring Recycling Event on Saturday April 24th at the First Presbyterian Church of Douglasville located at 9190 Campbellton Street. Make sure to stop by and drop off your recyclables and take the opportunity to ask questions! Let’s keep finding ways of “Keeping Douglasville Beautiful!” As always, I look forward to seeing you and your families out and about during this spring season. If you have any questions or would like further information about beautification projects, visit the City of Douglasville website at DouglasvilleGA. gov. May God bless you, your family, and the City of Douglasville!
WHO WORKS FOR THE CITY? Each month I would like to introduce you to a City employee. This month it is our very own Golf Professional, Chris Cartwright. Chris is the Head Professional at the West Pines Golf Club and is a member of the PGA. He was born and raised in Cartersville, GA. As a child he played baseball, basketball, and of course, golf. After graduating from Cartersville High School, he attended Clayton State University on a golf scholarship. After his freshman year, his path was redirected to Reinhardt College in Waleska, GA where he would meet the young woman who would become his wife, Danielle, and to play golf. At Reinhardt, he won numerous college events, set a few school records, and competed in the 2010 NAIA National Championship with his teammates. After college, he married Danielle and he came to work at West Pines and regularly plays on the Georgia PGA tournament circuit. In the fall of 2020, he qualified for the PGA Professional Championship in Port St. Lucie, Florida. This tournament brings together the top PGA Pros from around the country to compete for 20 spots in the 2021 PGA Championship at Kiawah Island. He is looking forward to competing on the national level and representing Douglasville to the best of his abilities! Under his direction, West Pines was able to adapt to the challenges of COVID-19 and introduce new guidelines and safety measures to continue operating throughout the pandemic. Currently, West Pines is on track to have a record year for the golf club. We are so proud of Chris and all his accomplishments in the golf world and his leadership at the West Pines Golf Club!
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