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LOCAL NEWS
Edgewater Optimists: ‘Everything is for Kids’
The Lakewood Interurban Train
Local Speedster to Represent Lakewood at Down Under Event
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NEIGHBORHOOD
EDGEWATER
| SLOAN’S LAKE | WEST COLFAX | TWO CREEKS
March 14 – April 17, 2017 • ngazette.com • FREE
Development: Of Charrettes, Groundbreaking and Anchors n By
J. Patrick O’Leary
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dgewater is moving forward on its design of Civic Center project, and has announced two sets of design charrettes later this month. Charrette is a French word for an intense period of design and planning activity, and typically refers to multisession gatherings of stakeholders to guide design. “The design workshops – as they are now called – will be on March 15, 18 and 29 and April 1,” said Edgewater City Manager HJ Stalf. “The first two and last two are the same, just repeated, so people should attend one or the other.” The first open house and information-gathering session takes place on Wednesday, March 15, from 6 to 8 p.m., and Saturday, March 18, from 1 to 3 p.m. The second open house and public feedback session takes place two weeks later, on Wednesday, March 29, from Continued on page 2
‘WE GROW TOGETHER’ MURAL adorns a utility shed next to the RTD W Line where it snakes past the Mountair Park Community Farm, an unused urban lot that now produces fresh food. PHOTO: SCOTT WESLEY
Mountair Park Community Farm: More Than Fresh Produce n By
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Nancy Hahn
prout City Farms’ one-acre farm in Lakewood’s Mountair Park began in 2014. Sprout City Farms is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization with a mission to transform unused urban spaces into farms that produce fresh food for their community. They choose communities for their farms that don’t have easy access to fresh produce. Lakewood had just the right location and a willingness to work together to create and to manage the farm. Right now, the Mountair Farm’s soil is bare and dry. It is easy to see the promise of the bright tomatoes, fat pumpkins, carrots, potatoes and tall sunflowers, though. Brightly colored murals painted by artists from the 40 West Arts District, remind everyone of the bounty to be harvested from their farm. The park bulletin board has information about upcoming spring activities at the farm. The bare bones of their program are crops are planted, people learn about growing food through activities at the farm, weekly shares of produce can be purchased, produce is donated to schools or other programs, community partners guide and help support the program. But Sprout City Farms is not a bare bones program. Three years before the Mountair Park Farm was begun, Sprout City Farms had created a farm at the Denver Green School. When the Denver Green School Farm was flourishing, Mountair was begun. When Mountair was growing well, Sprout City Farms began the Dahlia Campus Community Farm in Park Hill. Each farm is very different, because each grows for their particular community. In addition to the vegetable crops, Mountair Park Farm has a fruit tree orchard, a pollinator garden created with the Butterfly Pavilion, a raspberry patch, and beehives. Many community members mentioned in
Mountair Park Farm’s first year that it didn’t look like a farm, because there was no corn. Laura Lavid, executive director of Sprout City Farms, explained that although corn isn’t usually grown in such a small farm, “We grow corn at Mountair, because that was important to the community.” As interest in the farm grew, the community made the farm their own. Warren Tech built a tool shed with cold storage for the farm. Outdoor musical instruments were added by the Rotary Club. The community
felt that the farm needed an area where food could be prepared, so that was added. Mountair Park sees a lot of families visit; so a yearly Family Fun Festival has been created. This year it will be on May 20th. There are celebrations for Earth day, opportunities to volunteer, and workshops. Workshops topics have included seed starting, chicken keeping, pickling, cheesemaking, and canning. For two years the city of Lakewood has held three-week summer camps for children at Mountair Park, which
include activities focused on growing and eating healthy, active outdoor play, art, and earth science. Mountair Park Community Farm has a community farm stand at the farm every Saturday from August through October to sell produce, but the produce is priced as “by suggested donation.” The program was designed with the purpose of providing food for those in the community, including those Continued on page 4
N E I G H B O R H O O D F E AT U R E
No Egg Left Unturned: Edgewater’s Annual Youth Egg Hunt n By
Meghan Godby
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he clocks have sprung forward and temperatures are on the rise – spring is almost here. Warmer weather and longer days mean more opportunities to get out and enjoy all that your community has to offer. If you’re looking for a family (and pet!) friendly event to kick off the season, the City of Edgewater has you covered. For the past several years, Edgewater has delighted children of all ages with its annual Youth Egg Hunt. Sponsored by the Huff and Leslie Law Firm, this fun, free event is a favorite of the local community and continues to grow – around 200 people came out last year for a morning of egg-hunting fun. This year, the festivities will be held on Saturday, April 15 in Edgewater’s Citizen’s Park, making it a convenient choice for area families. Four age groups will be set up (ages 0-3, 4-5, 6-8, and 9-11), so nearly all kiddos will have a chance to participate. That morning, 3,500 eggs will be scattered on the grounds of EDGEWATER HAS DELIGHTED CHILDREN of all ages Citizen’s Park (1,000 for each age group, except 0-3, which will have 500 eggs), making it a great opportunity to fill those Easter baskets.
with its annual Youth Egg Hunt, this year to be held April 15 in Citizens Park. PHOTO: CITY OF EDGEWATER
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