April 2015 Village Vibe

April 2015

villagevibe News and views from the heart of Fernwood

Pizza returns to Fernwood Cornerstone Cafe brings back pizza and memories of the Thin Edge of the Wedge, Fernwood’s original pizza joint

›› Lenore Rankin

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he pizza oven is firing and the beer taps are flowing. After almost 10 years of providing a steady stream of caffeine to Fernwoodians during the day, the Cornerstone Cafe is super excited to expand into the evening with the launch of its new pizza offering.

Over the last few months we’ve been tooling up, renovating our beautiful heritage space and perfecting our new menu. And at long last, we’re ready: Pizza has returned to Fernwood!

Our hand-rolled pizza crusts are made with all organic ingredients. Our toppings are locally sourced from some of Victoria’s premiere suppliers and we’ve sourced out the best gluten free crust option that’s sure to satisfy.

We are pleased to partner with local high quality suppliers like The Whole Beast, Discovery Coffee, Silk Road Tea, and of course, Phillips Brewery. We look forward to seasonal offerings to take advantage of locally grown produce and will continue to source out the best ingredients that Victoria has to offer.

If you’re one of our day time regulars we hope you’ll give us a try in the evening. And we’re really looking forward to meeting some new folks who work and can’t make into the Cafe during the day.

We’ll continue to provide a casual atmosphere where everyone feels welcome and comfortable. Whether you’re on a first date, getting together with friends, out walking your dog, looking for a family friendly space close to home, or looking to chill with a beer or glass of wine on your own, we got you covered.

Over the next few months you’ll notice 2

Hot and delicious Classic Pepperoni Pizza fresh from the oven at the Cornerstone Cafe. Photo: Mila Czemerys

licensed patios—one right on the corner of Fernwood Rd in front of the Cafe and the other in our back alley patio. We’ll continue to offer live bluegrass on Wednesdays and feature live acts on Fridays.

We also look forward to offering lunch-sized Pizzettas (stay tuned for our Vic High students special), a weekend Breakfast Pizza Menu and delivery exclusively within the boundaries of Fernwood by bicycle!

Here’s the best part. On top of having a great experience at your local eatery, you can also feel good about supporting your great neighbourhood. The Cornerstone Cafe is fully owned by Fernwood NRG and profits from the Cafe are directed back into neighbourhood programs and services like childcare, food security and family programs.

Until the end of June come join us and take advantage of our opening special: a pint of Phillips brew and Pizza of your choice for $15.

fter considering all of the ways we could make it happen – physically, aesthetically, and financially – Fernwood NRG has decided to not go ahead with the purchase of the properties at 2013 and 2017 Fernwood Road.

We wanted to make sure we were living up to the high standard of affordable housing we achieved with Park Place on Yukon Street. In the end we decided the

Feature

George Jay

buzz:

Update: 2013-2017 Fernwood Road ›› Lisa Matthaus

Chair of the Board, Fernwood NRG

A

constraints of the site just wouldn’t make that possible. As well, the lack of public funding for affordable housing made the financing of the project particularly tight.

We will be busy nonetheless with the exciting new project at 1310 Gladstone, where we hope to break ground later this year!

While we’ve decided to focus our energies in the near term on this project, we remain on the lookout for other opportunities to contribute to the vibrancy of Fernwood, including providing more affordable housing, in the future.

in this issue Buzz

Hold on to your butt! page 3

th

Village Vibe 10 Anniversary page 4 & 5

Contribute to new mural project page 7

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guest editorial:

villagevibe

No More Good Enough...

Published by Fernwood Neighbourhood Resource Group Editorial Committee

Lee Herrin Hayley Evans

Matt Takach David Segal Founding Editor Lisa Helps

Greatness beckons!

Contributors

Lenore Rankin Marcell Hanson Lifecycles Project Society Kathryn Juricic Mila Czemerys Lee Herrin Margaret Hantiuk Jillian Player Ben Clark Edie Irons Tania Wegwitz Art

Mila Czemerys Axel Morgan Leik Images Fernwood NRG Archives Production Mila Czemerys Contact us

1310 Gladstone Avenue Victoria, BC V8R 1S1 T 778.410.2497 F 250.381.1509 vibe@fernwoodnrg.ca www.villagevibe.ca To enquire about advertising in the Village Vibe, please contact ads@fernwoodnrg.ca The views expressed in the Village Vibe do not necessarily reflect the views of Fernwood NRG.

declaration of principles & values ››

We are committed to creating a socially, environmentally, and economically sustainable neighbourhood;

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We are committed to ensuring neighbourhood control or ownership of neighbourhood institutions and assets;

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We are committed to using our resources prudently and to becoming financially self-reliant;

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We are committed to the creation and support of neighbourhood employment;

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We are committed to engaging the dreams, resources, and talents of our neighbours and to fostering new links between them;

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We are committed to taking action

›› Marcell Hanson No matter our walk in life, each one of us at any given point in our life wants for more or less of something.

We may feel we need more clarity, more energy, more time, more rest, more money; or perhaps less stress, less pain, less problems, less struggles. Have we accepted these as wants that we feel are vaguely out of reach? The obstacles feel so intrinsic, that our wants are rarely escalated to musts. There is a struggle to shift from simply getting by, to thriving. We settle for “good enough,” when our true desire and potential is to achieve greatness!

Imagine a well-made table with four sturdy table legs. We feel pretty confident to place our antique dishes, our baby change pad and our electronics on this table without it collapsing. It can be relied on. As long as the table is cared for, we will continue to have the privilege of counting on its stability for many years.

The table is a metaphor for our wellness.

The legs represent four components that stabilize our health and create reliability in our bodies and minds. The creation of a stable table means making healthy decisions consistently, which will provide individuals with the ability to be productive daily, maintain energy and clarity, and to regularly set and achieve goals and thus experience personal greatness!

The basic components of a StableTable: 1. Adequate hydration 2. Daily exercise 3. Nutritious meals 4. Quality sleep Yes, it is truly no enormous secret.

However, the challenge seems to be that despite the importance of these elements being common knowledge, in our busy lives they are sacrificed routinely to make room for more busyness. What is not truly understood is the impact on our performance when our basic wellness is abandoned. The majority of people have not established rituals that support the daily stability of their wellness.

Let us set some new rituals to help you identify your priorities and path to greatness.

For more info, visit shiftyourgame.com.

buzz:

Library saves & shares seed ›› LifeCycles Project Society In the past, seed production was localized by necessity and tradition. However, in just a couple of generations, fewer farmers and gardeners are saving their own seed. Within modern agriculture, less value has been placed on regionally-adapted seed, and seed systems have become increasingly centralized. The result has been a marked loss in crop biodiversity—its estimated that 75% of the global diversity of vegetable varieties has disappeared in the last hundred years, due in large part to widespread corporate control of the world’s seed supply.

The Victoria Seed Library, a year-old partnership between LifeCycles and the Greater Victoria Public Library (GVPL), has joined the movement to help reverse this trend through access to rare and heritage varieties of seed and free seed saving workshops to build up skills and knowledge in the region. With 95% of

the food we eat originating from seeds, LifeCycles and the GVPL see the Seed Library as a way to increase self-reliance within local food systems and collectively steward a local supply of seeds that are adaptive, resilient, and can respond to climate change.

The Seed Library’s collection fits into just two medium-sized Rubbermaid totes but that’s not to say it’s limited. In 2015, the Seed Library has more than double its offerings from the previous year, with 100 varieties available to a 200-person (and growing) membership. The collection travels to various branches within the public library system. Members can then signout up to 6 varieties of easy-to-save, mostly self-pollinating seed.

Focusing on self-pollinating varieties, such as tomatoes, lettuce, beans and peas, helps to ensure the genetic purity and quality of the collection. These varieties are also well suited to home-scale gardens as they don’t need the same isolation distances or

population numbers as plants that cross-pollinate. Each ‘borrowed’ seed has the potential to produce one plant, which in turn can produce large amounts of seed to return to the collection. Unlike borrowing books, there are no fees for unreturned seed! The Seed Library is an opportunity to cultivate new skills, and get a taste for how simple the technologies of seed saving can be.

In 2015, the Victoria Seed Library will continue to grow deep roots through collaborating with local seed producers to deliver hands-on workshops and purchasing community seed-saving equipment. This spring, the Seed Library will also be forming the first Seed Library Steering Committee. For more info, contact vicseedlibrary@lifecyclesproject.ca.

The Seed Library runs from March to October. Member orientations are offered monthly, and Seed Libraries are held twice per month. Future dates and registration for orientations and workshops can be found at gvpl.ca/seedlibrary.

in response to neighbourhood issues, ideas, and initiatives;

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We are committed to governing our organization and serving our neighbourhood democratically with a maximum of openness, inclusivity and kindness;

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We are committed to developing the skills, capacity, self-worth, and excellence of our neighbours and ourselves;

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We are committed to focusing on the future while preserving our neighbourhood’s heritage and diversity;

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We are committed to creating neighbourhood places that are vibrant, beautiful, healthy, and alive;

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and, most of all, We are committed to having fun!

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villagevibe

April 2015

News and views from the heart of Fernwood

buzz:

buzz:

Hold on to your butt! FernFest wants you FernFest is looking for musicians, volunteers, and artisans to be involved with our 20th anniversary festivities

›› Mila Czemerys

washing into the ocean. Photo: Mila Czemerys

Stop cigarettes from ending up in the ocean by putting your butts where they belong

›› Kathryn Juricic You may have noticed a small canister for cigarette butts outside the Cornerstone Café. This canister is one of many the Surfrider Foundation has set-up throughout Victoria to deter cigarette butts making their way into sewers and then ending up on beaches and in the ocean.

The Surfrider Foundation, an international organization that operates in many cities, is a coastal conservation non-profit made up of over 200,000 members aiming to “protect and enjoy oceans, waves and beaches.”

It’s easy to notice cigarette butts during Surfrider’s monthly beach cleanups, as they are consistently the number one item collected. Gillian Montgomery, Chairperson of the Vancouver Island chapter, decided to take this matter into her own hands by setting up a “Hold On To Your Butt” (HOTYB) campaign in Victoria after a successful launch by Surfrider chapters in Huntington Beach and San Diego.

Cigarette butts pose a serious threat to our environment and communities. Toxins

www.fernwoodnrg.ca

are released when wet, they take up to 25 years to decompose, and require a lot of time, energy and resources to clean up.

Montgomer y began HOTYB by putting one canister outside Coastline in downtown Victoria in July 2014.

Shortly after, the City of Victoria and the Downtown Victoria Business Association each bought 10 canisters.

Surfrider also operates a little closer to home as many of their volunteers live in Fernwood. The first annual neighbourhood cleanup in Fernwood was in September of 2013, to save the cigarette butts on the streets from entering the sewers and ending up on beaches and in the ocean. A huge success, this cleanup collected more that 3,000 cigarette butts within one hour!

For the well-being of our natural ecosystems, it is imperative to keep cigarette butts and other toxic waste off the ground.

A cigarette butt thrown on the street is a serious threat to marine environments.

By reforming communities through their HOTYB canisters, Surfrider aims to build general awareness that will carry into the habits of smokers.

The Surfrider Foundation hosts monthly coastal cleanups on the second Sunday every month. If you’re interested in learning more or getting a canister for your business or neighbourhood, visit them at vancouverisland.surfrider.org.

The annual painting of Terry The Bubble Man’s VW Bug. Photo: Morgan Leik Images

neighbourhood and a great cause, improve teamwork skills, and participate in fun projects! If you are interested in volunteering before, during, or after FernFest, please email fernfest@fernwoodnrg.ca.

FernFest’s Artisan Market is held Saturday, June 20th from 10am to 5pm.

Applications are available online.

If you are interested in sponsoring this event, check out sponsorship opportunities on our website. Thank you Fernwood!

More stories & info at www.vcml.ca VICTORIA

The Surfrider Foundation designed these canisters to collect cigarette butts and stop them from

FernFest is our neighbourhood celebration of local music and arts held over the summer solstice, June 19th and 20th, 2015. Inspired by the incredible people and energy of Fernwood, FernFest brings live music, performances, food & beverages, artisan market, kid’s activities, art projects, walking tours, surprises, and magic to Fernwood Square. Find out more at fernwoodnrg.ca/ events-directory/fernfest.

FernFest is looking for bands to perform in our unique venue. With thousands of people in attendance, FernFest offers amazing atmosphere and great exposure for your band. If you’re interested, please apply on our website.

Every year, FernFest depends on the generosity of local volunteers to run this festival. FernFest offers the opportunity to help build community, celebrate our

Interested in starting or expanding your own small business but can’t get a loan from a bank?

“ I feel like I have a purpose. I feel unlimited.”

April 2015

Learn more about how Charlane got her business started at www.vcml.ca

villagevibe

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feature:

Village Vibe: Looking back on 10 years

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n June 2005, the Cornerstone Building was still boarded up and the George & Dragon (now the Fernwood Inn) was desolate through the day and night. There were businesses in Fernwood square, and the DB Market beside the pub, but everyone was struggling with few customers and not a lot of foot traffic. The Belfry restoration had been completed years earlier, but the theatre patrons came, enjoyed their shows, and left the neighbourhood as quickly as they could.

It was in the midst of that, when things seemed dark for the neighbourhood, that Fernwood NRG (then called the Fernwood Community Centre Society) began a project of hope by delivering, by hand, to every door in the neighbourhood, the first edition of the Village Vibe.

In those days, the “paper” was two black and white sheets of 11”x17” paper photocopied and folded over to produce an 8 page newsletter. We did the photocopying and folding in-house. The first edition featured articles written by board and staff members of Fernwood NRG. Our goal was to let people know who we were as an organization and what we did.

Previously, there had been other papers in the neighbourhood but they had proven unreliable in terms of their publication dates. We needed a vehicle that we could use deliberately to communicate with our neighbours every month like clockwork to let them know about our activities, and the events and programs they could enjoy in Fernwood.

In particular, we knew we’d soon have some big news to announce. We labeled the August 2005 edition (vol. 1 no. 3, for those who are counting) a “Special Edition” which announced that we had completed the purchase of what we had just then named the Cornerstone Building (yes, this fall the Cornerstone Building will mark 10 years in neighbourhood hands).

The paper continued monthly in its newsletter format until November 2006, when we went to two-colour process on a newsprint tabloid size format. The first edition of the new format, (vol. 2, no. 11)

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villagevibe

April 2015

villagevibe November 2006 : News and views from the heart of Fernwood

The 4 corners of Fernwood Village

T

The third issue of the Village Vibe announcing

he City Repair project in Portland Oregon defi nes intersection repair as “the citizen-led conversion of an urban street intersection into a public square … With an Intersection Repair,” they say, “public space is reclaimed for the whole community. Th e intersection of pathways becomes a place for people to come together. Th e space becomes a place.”

Th e four corners of Fernwood village form a circle, not a square, a hub, a gathering space, a place of encounter. Since the renovation of the Belfry Th eatre, the opening of the popular She Said Gallery, and, more recently Fernwood NRG’s purchase of the Cornerstone building and the Wilson brothers’ revival of the tired old Dragon, people have been fl ooding into the village again. We hope they are here to stay.

in this issue Views from the Street: Look who’s talking! Page 3 Feature: Homelessness: A National Disaster. Page 4 Faces of Fernwood Inn Page 7

the purchase of the Cornerstone Building.

Published August 2005.

The Village Vibe’s updated format which is still

featured pictures of the new renovated buildings in the core of Fernwood Village, especially the Fernwood Inn and the Cornerstone Building. The new format of the paper had higher production costs, and more room for advertisements.

used today. Published November 2006.

by our then Board Chair, Lisa Helps; her article, “National Disaster…An end in sight?” explored the issue of homelessness in Victoria.

The news and views come from the hearts of the food-security enthusiasts, the gardening gurus, the artists, the activists, the innovative Vic High students, the musicians, the healers, the teachers, the chefs, and many, many others who have shared their stories and connected with each other in and through the pages of the Village Vibe.

- Lisa Helps However, the November edition featured a number of “your ad could be here” inserts, as we hadn’t yet lined up advertisers for all of the spaces available. The new format also had room for a feature article in the centerfold (where you’re reading this article now). This allowed space for longer explorations of issues of importance to the neighbourhood—the first one was written

Although I had been involved with the Village Vibe since its inception, the first article I ever wrote for the paper was published in August 2008. It was a feature—“Dreamers of the day: Ten years into the Fernwood Revolution”—where I described my early involvement with the Fernwood Community Centre in the late summer of 1998, and the genesis of

Fernwood NRG’s Declaration of Principles and Values which appear every edition in the masthead (as I wrote last month in the editorial “Ten years of ‘Principles & Values’”). When I wrote that article, I had assumed that my time with Fernwood had ended, and that my contribution was merely for posterity. Little did I know that a year later I’d be in the Executive Director’s chair myself, and doing my best to lead Fernwood NRG into the next period of growth and development.

The Vibe went four-colour (which allows for full colour photos and graphics) for the first time in September 2008 to announce the opening of Fernwood NRG’s Park Place project on Yukon Street. By then, the paper had settled into a three column format and featured eight ads, including four from local politicians.

We went four-colour permanently in June 2009 to announce the departure of our Executive Director Roberta Martell who had led us through the period of the Cornerstone and Park Place projects. That issue also marked the four year anniversary of the Village Vibe, where editor Lisa Helps wrote about the genesis of the name “Village Vibe” and our tagline “news and views from the heart of Fernwood”: “The news and views come from the hearts of the food-security enthusiasts, the gardening gurus, the artists, the activists, the innovative Vic High students, the musicians, the healers, the teachers, the chefs, and many, many others who have shared their stories and connected with each other in and through the pages of the Village Vibe.” In fact, it’s probably that same list of correspondents and their readership that elected her Mayor last November (with the exception of the current high school students, of course).

In December 2009, the Vibe took on its current four column layout and format, with news items on pages 1 through 3 (including a redesigned masthead and a new “Editorial” space on page 2), a feature article on pages 4 and 5, and arts, gardening and events on pages 6 and 7, and the full colour photo essay “Scene in Fernwood” on page 8.

News and views from the heart of Fernwood

›› Lee Herrin Since then, we have focused intensely on neighbourhood content to ensure the newspaper is maximally relevant to residents, and contains content you can’t find anywhere else. Fernwood NRG first published our annual report as an insert in the February 2010 edition (this marks the sixth year we’ve published our annual report in the paper).

We’ve also worked hard to attract many more “hyper-local” advertisers—our paper is distributed to people within 10 minutes’ walk of Fernwood Village, so it makes sense for businesses in that circulation area to advertise in the paper. We dropped down to bi-monthly publication in August 2010 (labelled Summer 2010) to ensure that the paper was financially sustainable long term (i.e. costs and benefits were balanced).

Today, Fernwood NRG pays for the production costs (design and layout), but we also have a newspaper in which we can

provide information about our activities on a consistent basis to our neighbours. Neighbourhood writers, artists and photographers have a venue in which to publish articles, comics, and photos; and, other Fernwood organizations have a place to let the neighbourhood know about upcoming events.

Paid ads by local businesses cover the hard costs of printing and distribution.

Over the past 10 years, the Vibe has evolved into a stable format that is both engaging and distinctly Fernwood. It’s still the best looking (in our humble opinion) neighbourhood newspaper in the city. And, as this article shows, the 10 years of collected papers provide a tremendous historical resource that paint a portrait of a neighbourhood in transition. And with support from volunteers, neighbours, and advertisers, the Village Vibe will be here a long time into the future.

TICKETS GO ON SALE APRIL 15, 10am PDT

Weekly from June 29 to August 28 at the Fernwood Community Centre 250-381-1552 x107 | www.fernwoodnrg.ca

mark your calendar:

Village Vibe’s 10th Bithday Party

2015

Fernwood NRG’s Village Vibe has been broadcasting news and views from the heart of Fernwood for a whole decade this June!

Over these years, the Village Vibe has helped to create a sense of community and identity in our neighbourhood. We now have an archive of stories that paint a pictures of this place and time.

Join readers, writers, photographers, artists and the Vibe publishing team to celebrate the evolution of Fernwood’s own bi-monthly newspaper.

What: Village Vibe’s 10th Birthday Party. There will be cake and coffee. Please

join us to celebrate this milestone for our local newspaper.

When: May 4th, 2015 from 5:00pm to 7:00pm Where: The Cornerstone Cafe, 1301 Gladstone Avenue

www.fernwoodnrg.ca

April 2015

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garden gleanings:

oaklands news:

Trends in Tending ›› Margaret Hantiuk Looking back over 10 years of my Garden Gleanings column for the Village Vibe, I am thinking of the ways that gardening is trending here in Fernwood (and all over): Going organic: We realize that every backyard that goes organic and stops using pesticides and herbicides mean less poisons going into the air, soil, and water systems, as well as the birds, bees, and other animals in our world (including ourselves). We need to be informed in order to recognize the good from the bad bugs, and then learn to garden with safer methods of deterrence (read more about this here: www.lindagilkeson.ca/gardening_tips.html). Choose disease resistant varieties and then support the plants so that they are as strong and healthy as possible. Use allies and learn what the problem is and the best strategy to help.

Build the soil: Start from the ground up: Compost! Mulch! — every year. Save your leaves. Do a soil test. Use good soil amendments and fertilizers carefully and wisely. Check our Integrity Sales on Keating Cross Road for good soil amendments

and soil tests, and the Compost Ed Centre on North Park for information on mulching and composting.

Permaculture: This involves the evolving development of integrated and natural systems for stewarding your land, e.g. having chickens and using their manure. The Compost Ed Centre has information and courses on permaculture.

Food gardening: Mix your food garden into your ornamentals (and vice versa).

Food gardens can be in containers, against vertical walls (especially south and west facing), in raised beds, and, with cold frames, hothouses, cloches, and various plastic shelters, can be year-round. (Linda Gilkeson’s website and the Compost Ed Centre can help with tips on best winter veggie varieties and year-round gardening tips.)

Wildlife habitat/food: growing early flowering shrubs and the perennials that are host foods for butterflies, bees, and birds is not only essential for the success of your garden, but for the whole ecosystem; it has gotten to that point that every bit is crucial. Leave some “wild” in your garden for habitat. Have some water out in a dish.

Keep a bird feeder that is rat- and squirrel-

proof. Plant shrubs with berries. Grow some native plants. Have some (smallholed) birdhouses and bee boxes for native bees. And (sorry to say this) keep your cat inside — domestic cats are one reason that songbirds are disappearing (and songbirds consume a lot of bad bugs!)

Drought tolerant gardening: A thick annual mulch of compost, leaf mold, and tree chippings is the best way to keep your soil from drying out. Choose plant varieties that suit our wet winters and dry summers.

Water wisely: in the mornings or as early as possible, by hand or with low flow/drip irrigation systems (many can be set up by hand on the soil surface). Know your site and group plants for their watering and sun/shade needs. Harvest rainwater and use gray water. Let your lawn brown in summer — it’s the new “green”!

Easy care gardening: Plant easy care, hardy, and disease-resistant varieties that suit your site and soil. Use raised beds.

Rake leaves onto beds for mulch. Mulch more to weed less, and use groundcovers.

Install an efficient watering system to keep your garden watered sufficiently in our late summer droughts.

artist’s aside:

Kathy Guthrie’s Calligraphy ›› Jillian Player Throughout her artistic life, Kathy Guthrie’s art has transformed over the years, but the one constant has been calligraphy. She started taking art seriously as a young person, experimenting with pastels, before studying graphic design at Sheridan College in Ontario, where she is originally from. After college, Kathy started to take a keen interest in calligraphy.

Kathy and her family moved between Alberta and BC for a few years. While living in Calgary, she joined the calligraphy guild and sought out instruction from international calligraphers. They were living in Brentwood in the nineties, when she started combining other mediums with calligraphy.

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villagevibe

April 2015

Finally, they came to rest upon their modern home on Shakespeare Street nine years ago.

While raising two children — who have become artists/musicians — Kathy studied at Vancouver Island School of Art (VISA) and received a Certificate of Visual Arts. She is still a frequent student at the school, taking workshops with different instructors, to continually grow as an artist. While at VISA she became enamored with printmaking.

She joined Ground Zero Printmakers to explore the process more fully. Kathy is a member of the Fairbank Calligraphy Society and Gallery 1580 studios, and is fully committed to studio work. Her art seems to have come full circle and is now on a new trajectory. For a number of years, Kathy has been incorporating vintage family photos

into her work, which she says is not nostalgic, but rather a source of inspiration. She is reproducing large (30” x 30”) images from original old photos of her sister who passed away, and pictures of her family cottage in Ontario. She layers these large, grayscale images with tissue paper and Mylar plastic.

Each layer is comprised of drawings of grids, words, and paint, transforming the photos into illusory and ambiguous multi-media works.

Kathy Guthrie has been involved in many group and juried art shows. Look for her in the upcoming TD Art Gallery Paint-in and the Sooke and Sidney fine art shows. See more of her artwork and check out her calligraphy workshops at kathyguthrie.com.

Place making Neighbours are creating a sense of place through creative additions to common space

›› Ben Clark The placemaking trend is gaining momentum throughout Oaklands and the rest of the region – neighbours taking the initiative to creatively transform their common space into a vibrant and welcoming environment. Placemaking can include everything from chalk art on the street to planting a garden on the boulevard to building a little library box. A herb garden or little library in front of a house provides an inviting interface between public and private property.

I was already thinking about putting a book box in front of my house, and then became even more inspired when I heard Oaklands Community Association’s own Sarah Rose Robert on the radio talking about a great map she made of all the little libraries in the city. You can find a link to the map and her blog post about it at victoriaplacemaking.ca.

In response to this growing trend, City Staff have been hard at work developing guidelines for boulevard gardens to help both beginners and experienced gardeners build gardens in a way that provides a community benefit without creating hazards or interfering with public safety.

A great time to stroll around the neighbourhood and check out some of the current placemaking is on May 9th from 9:00am to 1:00pm, when Oaklands holds its Annual Neighbourhood Garage Sale Day. This spring, I encourage you to consider what you can do to sprout some placemaking initiatives on your street, and help make our neighbourhoods a unique and inviting place to be.

News and views from the heart of Fernwood

commons corner:

george jay:

A fresh start for Spring Murals in the works Ridge Commons ›› Edie Irons

Turning Vision into Action

Spring is here, and after a lively and positive community forum about Spring Ridge Commons last fall, an action-oriented public meeting coming up on April 28th, 2015 will provide opportunities to get involved with this historic and important space.

Spring Ridge Commons, located on Chambers Street between Gladstone and Pembroke, is the oldest community food forest and permaculture garden on Vancouver Island, and one of the oldest in North America. It is widely regarded as an invaluable community resource, but maintaining it as a beautiful, safe, and open space for all to use and enjoy has proved challenging at times.

New volunteers are bringing a welcome infusion of energy and organization to Spring Ridge, and the upcoming meeting will kick off a new era for the Commons.

A group of community members including farmers, teachers, land stewards, and neighbours has come together to answer the above question and plan for the future of the Commons, based on the feedback gathered at the September meeting.

They are now are inviting anyone with energy to contribute to the longterm health and viability of Spring Ridge Commons — be it in the form of weeding, fundraising, permaculture design, or volunteer management — to come to the meeting on April 28th to help turn that vision into action. All are welcome to attend, even if you are not yet sure how you want to help.

The meeting will provide ways to get involved and help shape the future of Spring Ridge Commons. It will be held at the Fernwood Community Centre in the gym on April 28th at 7:00pm. Light refreshments and tea from the garden will be served.

Strong Community Support

Appreciating the Commons

Last September, more than 60 people showed up at a public forum convened

by Fernwood NRG to share their views about recent happenings at Spring Ridge Commons, and visions for the future.

That meeting was overwhelmingly positive and constructive. In spite of a recent lapse in volunteer-driven maintenance, the vast majority of participants voiced their support and respect for the garden as a community resource where anyone can spend time, harvest food, learn about sustainable ecological practices, and connect to the living earth.

But the question remains: how to harness this community support and ensure a sustainable future for Spring Ridge Commons?

As spring arrives and new life returns to the garden, consider taking a stroll through Spring Ridge Commons sometime soon.

Many of the plants there are edible or have medicinal purposes — feel free to forage!

Every Sunday afternoon folks come to “Bee in the Garden,” to work or share tea and good company. Take a detour through Spring Ridge Commons any time to sit quietly in nature, have a conversation with a friend or a stranger, pull up some invasive grass, or just observe the new growth on the old fruit trees.

If you like it there, please consider coming to the public meeting on April 28th at 7:00pm, or find updates on the Spring Ridge Commons Facebook page, or springridgecommons.ca.

›› Tania Wegwitz

the George Jay kids to create a series of murals to help provide that welcome.

The pieces will include two 24’ by 12’ murals that will frame the west end of the school’s primary wing, as well as two 8’ by 8’ murals on the gym’s west wall. The pieces will include a motif of an eagle and the sun symbolizing strength, protection, and welcome, large scale images of kids reproduced from pictures drawn by the students, and the school’s “Learning to care, caring to learn” motto in the many languages spoken by its students.

The work is set to begin in May but the kids need your help to fund the remaining $3,500 of the $6,000 project.

You can help make it happen by donating at www.georgejaypac.com or dropping off a cheque (payable to “George Jay Elementary” and noting “Mural Project”) at the school’s temporary location at 2780 Richmond Road. For more info, please call Tania Wegwitz at 250-995-0161.

This spring, you can help welcome back the George Jay kids to Fernwood, beautify our neighbourhood, and make art happen on the grand scale. Local artists and George Jay students are set to paint a huge mural for the Cook Street side of their school, but they need your help to make it happen.

With new gardens and playgrounds recently added and a seismic upgrade nearing completion, students, parents, and school staff are now looking at how the school building itself can be used to tell the story of the school’s tremendous diversity and sense of community. “Kids, parents and teachers were unanimous,” said PAC President Kate Wallace. “They wanted colour and a sense of joy to welcome people to our refurbished school on the Cook Street side.”

Local artists Joanne Thomson, Jennifer Johnson, and Beth Threlfall have teamed up to donate half their time to work with

FERNWOOD NRG SPRING PROGRAMS APRIL - JUNE 2015 (Reg) Registration Required

MONDAY

Fernwood Family Dinner (DI) Ongoing LifeRing Alcohol & Drugs Support Group (DI) Ongoing Kung Fu (DI/Reg) Apr 6 - Jun 29

(DI) Drop In

5:00pm - 7:00pm 6:45pm - 8:00pm 6:00pm - 7:30pm

TUESDAY Family Resource Program (DI) LifeRing Alcohol & Drugs Support Group (DI) Capoeira for Youth (Reg) Male Caregivers Group (DI) Youth Drop-in (13-17yrs) (DI) Capoeira for Adults (Reg) Mindfulness in Everyday (Reg)

Ongoing Ongoing Feb 3 - Jun 30 Ongoing Ongoing Jan 13 - May 26 Apr 7 - May 27

9:30am - 11:30am 12:00pm - 1:00pm 4:00pm - 5:00pm 4:00pm - 7:00pm 7:00pm - 9:00pm 7:00pm - 8:30pm 7:30pm - 9:30pm

Ongoing Every other week Apr 15 - May 6 Apr 8 - Jun 24 Ongoing Ongoing Apr 8 - May 28

11:30am - 2:30pm 1:00pm - 8:00pm 6:00pm - 7:00pm 6:00pm - 7:30pm 7:00pm - 10:00pm 7:30pm - 8:30pm 7:30pm - 9:30pm

Ongoing Apr 2 - Jun 18 Apr 2 - Jun 18 Ongoing

9:30am - 11:30am 10:00am - 10:30am 10:30am - 11:15am 11:30am - 2:30pm

WEDNESDAY Best Babies (Reg) Good Food Box Pickup Dancing for Wellbeing (Reg) Kung Fu (DI/Reg) Nuu Chah Nulth Drumming (Closed) LifeRing Workbook Workshop (Reg) Mindfulness in Everyday (Reg)

THURSDAY Family Resource Program (DI) Parent & Tot Creative Dance (Reg) Children Creative Dance (Reg) Best Babies (Reg)

FRIDAY Lunch n’ Play (DI) Ongoing Autumn Glow Seniors Program (55+yr)(DI) Ongoing Youth Drop-in (9-12yrs) (DI) Ongoing

10:30am - 12:30pm 12:00pm - 2:30pm 7:00pm - 9:00pm

SUNDAY Kyudo (Reg)

Apr 5 - Jun 28

10:00am - 12:00pm

Holiday closures on April 3, May 18, July 1 and August 3.

WORKSHOPS / SPECIAL EVENTS Public Community Meeting w/ VicPD - April 1 Intro to Psychic Development - April 18 & 25, May 16 & 23 ‘Lost Rivers’ Screening w/ Compost Ed Centre - April 17 Youth Carnival w/ Fernwood NRG - April 27 Spring Ridge Commons Design Meeting - April 28 1deas 2 Action - May 2 Grow Medicinal Mushrooms w/ D.I.Y. Fungi - May 7

For more information & to register contact: Fernwood Community Centre 1240 Gladstone Avenue, Victoria, BC T 250.381.1552 F 250.381.1509 info@fernwoodnrg.ca

For more special events, check: fernwoodnrg.ca/events-directory/calendar/

www.fernwoodnrg.ca

April 2015

villagevibe

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Scene in Fernwood : 10 years of memories