Vibe_Aug2007 v3

villagevibe August 2007 : News and views from the heart of Fernwood

Affordable housing crisis continues >> by Alanna Mayne Stressed out!

Someone please help small family.

Looking for hand up – not hand out.

Please help.

T

hese are a few of the requests from families looking for affordable two- or threebedroom apartments in Victoria posted on a rental website. With the current vacancy rate in Victoria at 0.5%, apartment demand is high while supply is low; owners have their pick of renters. And often a working-class family with children is not the ideal looking tenant. Many people emphasize they are quiet and do not drink or do drugs; they are responsible, working people who are just looking for a home. But a place to call home does not come for cheap.

A quick internet search shows that familysized apartments are in great demand. On July 18, UsedVictoria.com had approximately fifteen advertisements from families looking for threebedroom apartments in the range of $900 and $1200.

On the same day, Craigslist Victoria advertised only five three-bedroom apartments for under $1000, none of which were in Victoria proper. Additionally, the average cost of the three bedrooms available on Craigslist was an astounding $1784 per month, requiring a family to have an annual income of $64,000. The amount may not reflect the actual average rent of three bedroom apartments in Victoria, but does give a snapshot of the options available to people who were looking for one at that time.

Families Searching for a Home

Tammy is one such person looking for an apartment with her common law partner and two children. “I’ve never in my life found it so hard to find housing,” she says. Like many other families, they are forced to take apartments with fewer bedrooms than they need due to the cost. “Our price range will only allow us to get a two-bedroom, a lot of people won’t rent a two-bedroom to a four-person family,” she explains.

Her landlord sold the home Tammy and her family were living in, giving them no choice but to move and a deadline that is quickly approaching. “I’m scared we will end up homeless. This is how bad it is.”

Many landlords are either unwilling to rent to a family or don’t have apartments that would accommodate them. At least this is what potential tenants are being told. “Everywhere I call, everyone

upper floor

main floor

seems to say that their place is not child friendly,” states Beverley, a mother of two, ages three and six.

“One landlord told me because there was a parking lot nearby that it wasn’t suitable. Do I not walk in parking lots with my children nearly everyday? Do you not see kids in a parking lot at a mall?” In a city with an almost endless supply of university and college students to rent to, a single parent or young couple with children in their arms may not be the most welcoming sight to some landlords.

“Our income went up with job changes … but we have never paid less than 40% of our income for rent and utilities,” says Melissa, a mother of three and also foster parent to her 13 year old brother. When Melissa separated from her husband, she was also unfairly stereotyped. “Landlords were concerned kids would ‘run wild and be harder to handle and louder’ since I would now be the sole caregiver.” Trying to find affordable housing is not a new thing for her family, who have had difficulty ever since moving to Victoria in 2002, “it’s incredibly demoralizing, to say the least.”

The lack of family housing in Victoria leaves families with hardly any options. Some choose apartments with fewer bedrooms than they need, parents sleeping on the couch to give their children the privacy of their own bedroom. Others move into hotels with the hope that it is only temporary.

lower floor

1 A3.01

South elevation Scale: 1:50

Fernfest 2007 Fernwood NRG presents Fernfest Labour Day Weekend August 31, September 1st and 2nd Stevenson Park (behind Fernwood Community Centre at 1240 Gladstone)

Friday August 31st 6:00pm – 11:00pm > Opening Ceremony (6pm) > Beer Garden > Food Vendors > Live Music and Outdoor Neighbourhood Boogie Featuring: The Boogie Chillins, The Southern Urge, and Beatles Revolution

Saturday September 1st 10:00am – 11:00pm

Where have all the rentals gone?

In British Columbia, in order to qualify for subsidized housing a family must have a gross household income below $28,000. And because of a subsidized housing shortage, even when families qualify for rental assistance, they may have a long wait for an apartment.

However, according to BC Housing, renting an average three-bedroom apartment in Victoria requires a gross household annual income of $44,000. Any family in Victoria living between these two income levels falls between the cracks.

– continued on page 3

> Live Music all day (highlights include The Drop Tones, Emily Spiller, The Jeremy Walsh Band) > Beer garden > Food vendors > Kids activities: obstacle course with Victoria firemen, face painting, bouncy castle, bike rodeo, kids activity station > Seniors tea (2pm)

Sunday September 2nd 10:00am – 2:00pm > Pancake Breakfast > Family Sports and Activity Day

editorial :

Neighbourhood planning

A few months ago some of us from Fernwood NRG went to a City Hall meeting on neighbourhood planning.

The City had hired a few new planners and was ready to tackle the now out of date City Neighbourhood Plans. “We want to listen to you,” said the planners to the neighbourhood attendees, “We’re at the beginning of a process; we want your input. We want to update the City’s neighbourhood planning process.” At one point one I swear I heard one of them say (and I’m pretty sure ‘cause it’s in my notes in quotation marks), “Neighbourhood planning is executed through neighbourhood plans.”

But it’s actually not, not in Fernwood anyway.

This month the Cornerstone building turns two years old. In the months leading up to its purchase you can bet that we weren’t sitting down poring over the Fernwood Neighbourhood Plan (adopted

by Council in October 1994). No, we spent our time negotiating with a finicky seller, getting funding in place to fix the old thing up, and asking ourselves repeatedly if we were crazy as a small non-profit to buy a 1.3 million dollar building. And, even if we had consulted the plan we wouldn’t have seen the Cornerstone building marked on the map that depicts the village core.

declaration of principles and values We are committed to creating a socially, environmentally, and economically sustainable neighbourhood; We are committed to ensuring neighbourhood control or ownership of neighbourhood institutions and assets; We are committed to using our resources prudently and to becoming financially self-reliant; We are committed to the creation and support of neighbourhood employment; We are committed to engaging the dreams, resources, and talents of our neighbours and to fostering new links

On August 2nd when the building came into our hands we didn’t sit down to read the plan then either. No, we set to work with the energy and enthusiasm of our neighbours, hammers swinging, crowbars prying, and we lovingly filled and hauled away dumpsters of the building’s recent dark past.

When the building opened in November 2006 and families moved into the affordable housing units upstairs we didn’t consult the plan to see if we’d gotten it right. No, we celebrated with our supporters, reflected on the hard work of our neighbours, and reveled in the fact that we were all still friends.

Since we’ve pumped life back into the centre of the neighbourhood with the Cornerstone building, we haven’t had time to stop and read the Fernwood Neighbourhood Plan. The Cornerstone is the catalyst that we hoped it would be. It brings people to the centre of their neighbourhood, provides a public space of encounter and connection, and has fostered the growth of other such spaces.

Neighbourhood planning is surely not executed through neighbourhood plans.

No. A place comes alive by harnessing the energy of the people who live there, and running with it.

So I like needles ... >> by Christina Chan My first passion is needles. Sewing needles, knitting needles, tattoo and piercing needles, but, especially acupuncture needles and their use in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and holistic healing. Currently a third year student at the Canadian College of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, I hope to extend the realm of TCM in Fernwood through community outreach.

My goal is to educate and increase awareness about this modality of healing by offering a series of specific ear acupuncture treatments called the “NADA protocol” at the Fernwood Community Center. This will allow members of the community to experience acupuncture first hand and an opportunity for a future acupuncturist like me to practice my skills. I am no stranger to promoting health in the community, as I am also a first aid instructor at the Victoria

the relief of certain medical disorders. The most recent discoveries were made in the 1950s by Dr. Paul Nogier of Lyon, France. Its current practice consists of complete organization of ear reflex points that can be used to relieve many health problems. The theory of ear acupuncture is based on the representation of the ear as a “microacupuncture system” and that other micro-systems have been reported in foot and hand reflexology, and facial and scalp acupuncture.

Since the 1970s, auricular acupuncture has been utilized in the treatment of acute drug withdrawal. And in 1985, the National Acupuncture Detox Association (NADA) was established as a nonprofit association promoting the use of acupuncture as an adjunctive treatment for addictions and mental disorders. Over 1500 clinical sites in the US, Europe, Australia and the Caribbean currently use these protocols, including various sites in Vancouver, BC.

Acupuncture points have been mapped and refined over a period of 2000 years.

between them; We are committed to taking action in response to neighbourhood issues, ideas, and initiatives; We are committed to governing our organization and serving our neighbourhood democratically with a maximum of openness, inclusivity and kindness; We are committed to developing the skills, capacity, self-worth, and excellence of our neighbours and ourselves; We are committed to focusing on the future while preserving our neighbourhood’s heritage and diversity; We are committed to creating neighbourhood places that are vibrant, beautiful, healthy, and alive; and, most of all, We are committed to having fun!

Branch of St. John Ambulance. It is no surprise, then, that my second passion is teaching and working with people from all walks of life.

So what is acupuncture and how does it work?

Acupuncture is the insertion of fine needles into the body at specific points, which have proven to be effective in the treatment of numerous health conditions. Within the rich history of Traditional Chinese Medicine, acupuncture points have been mapped and refined over a period of 2000 years.

Although modern conventional medicine cannot fully explain its functions, the belief in Traditional Chinese acupuncture is based on the ancient theories of Qi (energy) and Xue (blood) flow through distinct channels or meridians within the body. These meridians often correspond to the pathways of nerves and blood vessels.

What conditions may be treated by acupuncture?

A recognized therapy by the World Health Oragnization (WHO), countless conditions both physical and psychoemotional can be addressed using acupuncture. The treatment is dependent on a practitioner’s training and intention as well as the condition and constitution. The number of treatments and efficacy of acupuncture often vary according to the duration, severity and nature of a patient’s condition.

What is ear acupuncture and the NADA protocol?

Auricular, or ear acupuncture, has been used throughout history in both Eastern and Western civilizations for

Page 2 | News and views from the heart of Fernwood | August 2007

Adapted to Western mentalities and conditions, the NADA approach is rooted in Chinese medicine.

The protocol consisting of five ear acupuncture points (parasympathetic, Shenmen, kidney, liver, lung) aids the process of natural healing during chemical detoxification while managing symptoms of withdrawal. This particular 5-needle protocol supports the body’s ability to detoxify while nurturing the nervous and endocrine systems during this process. It also has a profound ability to calm and rejunvenate, which is why it has been incorporated into many health care models including critical stress management programs and mental health. The NADA protocol has wide applications and anyone can benefit simply by having an open mind to receive the treatment.

Ear Acupuncture sessions are every Tuesday from 2:30 to 4:30 at very low rates until the end of August at the Fernwood Community Centre (1240 Gladstone Ave), in the MultiPurpose room.

For more information about studies in TCM, the NADA protocol or Acupuncture Without Borders Canada, another acupuncture outreach project that Christina is a member of, please check: http://www.ccaom.com/ http://www.acudetox.com/ http://awbcanada.com/

VillageVibe

views from the street :

So what about this

Views photos: Veronique da Silva

neighbourhood picnic? ( from the 2nd annual Harris Green picnic)

Loni Bowers

Todd and Suzanne Litman

I came because I am a member of the Christian Science Church and we co-sponsor the picnic with the Harris Green neighbours. It’s fun and it is nice to have more of an opening between the church and the neighbourhood.

I am really enjoying meeting the neighbours, all these nice new people.

We live just down the street from the Green and are very happy to live in the neighbourhood. We like any excuse to get together with our neighbours. The growing connection with the Christian Science Church is great. They are very open and accepting and it was really great for Suzanne to be able to share some of our traditional spiritual stories today and be so well received.

Photo: Rob Hughes

Anyone who has wandered by North Park and Chambers recently will have noticed the rather large boat perched incongruously on the corner lot. “Is it really the Fernwood Ark?” you ask. Not really, but the story remains as intriguing.

The fascinating craft is a 40-foot Nova Scotia lobster boat, built in Vancouver in 1991 for use in salmon farming operations. She is named ‘West Caper’ in honour of the ‘east capers’; the boats that fish for lobster off the east coast. West Caper arrived in Fernwood courtesy of long-time Victoria resident Bill McKechnie, who recently bought the ‘heritage’ apartment building at 1802 Chambers.

Bill says he’s simply fixing up the West Caper so that he can “do some serious sports fishing up the West Coast and into Alaska” and take his grandchildren out on some adventures. Initially, he’s pretty casual about the whole thing. He tells me that the boat is very seaworthy and just needs a little hull work and some cockpit and deck redesign to make it comfortable. As he warms to his subject, his passion for West Caper and his vision for her begin to shine through.

VillageVibe

I live right across the street from the Green and am fairly new to the neighbourhood. So I wanted to see who my neighbours are and to connect with them. In most city neighbourhoods you never know who lives nearby. But this is great! I have met a lot of people, including Dave (Kesson) who I am playing this interesting throwing game with right now. Anyone know what this game is called?

Housing crisis

The Boatman of the hood

>> by Trish Richards

Mark Hamelin

West Caper has some special characteristics that make her well suited to the travel that Bill has in mind.

She’s light, fuel efficient, and fast. Her hull is built of long strips of first growth fir with epoxy cloth over the wood. This design is analogous to airplane construction and makes the hull very strong and rigid. As a result, he tells me, “a small and fuel miserly Isuzu diesel will get the West Caper planning and cruising at about 16 knots.”

Given that fishing boats average 8 knots, she is a bit of a sportster. Bill says West Caper could easily be converted to bio-diesel and he intends to do just that once marine stations start to supply it. Also, she has the high bow that enables lobster boats to head into the ocean swells to set their traps. West Caper will be right at home in the wild seas off our west coast.

Bill’s enthusiasm is contagious. The two Vic High students working on the boat with him, Coby Stubel and Jesse Blaine, are honing their wood working skills and in Bill’s words, “learning the art of creative building.” The work has proven a great experience for both parties. Bill has high praise for both Coby and Jesse and says, “It feels good to be passing on my knowledge.” Coby tells me that at first the work was “just a job but the more time that went on the more I became attached to the project. Now I really feel as if I am part of the project.”

The neighbourhood has been welcoming to both Bill and West Caper. Bill says he was surprised by the reaction.

No one has called the City to complain about this unusual project next door. Rather, people have been really curious about and excited by his work. And Fernwood has already claimed Bill as its own. He is known in some circles as the Boatman of the Hood! Although that may be a bit much for Bill, he has really taken to Fernwood as well. He says that “Fernwood has been a pleasant surprise.

It has a great mix of people and a great feel to it. I am really enjoying living here.” As for West Caper, she won’t be enjoying Fernwood for much longer. Bill intends to have her back in the water later this month. Happy sea faring to you both!

| from page 1

This is where market-based affordable housing comes in. This type of housing is based on tenants paying rent using their own financial resources; they are not subsidized by the government or any other organization. BC Housing defines market rent as “the amount a unit could be rented for on a monthly basis in the private market, based on an appraisal … the economic, or breakeven rent for operating a unit may exceed the market rent.”

To make the lives of those like Melissa, Beverly, and Tammy a little easier, Fernwood NRG has plans to build a six-unit complex containing threebedroom apartments on Yukon Street. The Society currently owns and operates similar market-based affordable housing units with four three-bedroom apartments in the Cornerstone building. These apartments are rented for $979 plus the cost of utilities. The new units will be rented at the same rate. This means that Fernwood NRG will be able to rent to families with household incomes of around $36,000 without creating housing affordability stress. In other words, people will not have to spend more than about 30% of their income on housing.

The economic law of supply and demand suggests that more rental apartments would be built in Victoria.

This is not the case. In fact, Jane Worton, a communitybased researcher and Fernwood resident notes, that “each year a little bit more rental space is converted to ownership properties and almost no new rental spaces are being built. People cannot afford to build rental housing because they barely break even, let alone turn a profit … It is hard for anyone to find apartments to rent in Victoria, particularly families.”

As families continue the tiring search for rental accommodations, the housing market will soon be flooded again with students beginning another academic year, making competition even fiercer. Families can only hope that tomorrow’s newspaper or website update might have a rental ad from a landlord who recognizes their needs. As Beverley reflectively noted, “I’m sure if landlords and neighbours were in my shoes they would want and need a little bit of compassion”.

August 2007 | www.fernwoodneighbourhood.ca | Page 3

What’s in a neighbourhood?

Community activism at home and around the world feature :

>> by Susi Porter-Bopp

Our Common(unity) Future

In many ways, our crisis of planetary sustainability is at root a crisis of losing place. These places are habitats, cultures, forests and fisheries, rural communities, and neighbourhoods; these individual losses add up to a threat of losing our collective place: the planet.

One of the ways we can sustain our planet is by building stronger, more creative, more democratic communities that have better connectivity and higher density. It’s the integration of land use, transportation, economic, and cultural planning that generates wealth.

We normally think about these things – our investments in culture and our built environment – in terms of dollars and cents. We build them into our budgets. But what we fail to account for are the revenues, the new jobs, the investment, the property value and the cost-effectiveness of not having to build new things because we’ve invested in existing neighbourhoods and the people living in them.

Reinvigorating these local places may just be the key to sustaining our global future.

Neighbourhoods as urban catalysts

If neighbourhoods are the fabric of our cities, then local organizational networks are the threads that hold it all together. A network structure that connects neighbourhoods can translate local experience into new levels of collective conversation and, in so doing, can create new and richer forms of social intelligence.

By developing a neighbourhood movement that can then draw the global back to the local, global diversity enhances local sustainability. And then back again.

Getting people involved in neighbourhood activism is a matter of connecting someone’s particular concern – confusion about their rent being raised, concern about affordable housing, frustration in dealing with the City, anger about a lack of community gardening space – with an organization’s overall issue. There are a number of ways to do this. In Fernwood, our neighbourhood activism has tended to reframe a political act – frustration with a decayed neighbourhood core – as a dynamic and creative way of expressing that frustration – the revitalization of the Cornerstone building.

“The point of cities is multiplicity of choice,” urban activist and author Jane Jacobs once wrote. Yet modern urban planning often involves hierarchical processes that encourage, indeed prescribe, intentionally limited (and limiting) outcomes through bylaws and zoning regulations. Reducing the impact of the rigid regulatory environment that controls such planning allows us to pursue more organic, democratic forms of community and neighbourhood development and growth. As the stories that follow demonstrate, many neighbourhoods and communities are already pursuing collaborative planning processes that allow those affected by planning decisions to learn about, and participate in, the creation of outcomes with much higher common denominators.

Kinsale, Ireland

One place where community responsibility has begun to reshape the structure of the city is Kinsale, Ireland, a seaside town of 7,000 in rural Cork. In early 2005, students at the Iocal college initiated a three-year ‘community think-tank’ planning process that involved nearly every resident and sought to create a community action plan for dealing with peak oil. Called the ‘Kinsale Energy Descent Action Plan’ the outcome is the first timetabled strategy for weaning a town completely off fossil fuels. The plan combines the need for localization, by looking at what is essential to life (food, warmth, shelter, water) and rebuilding the local economy in such a way that it is actually able to supply these. The Town Council recently adopted the plan and Kinsale will be entirely fossil fuel free by 2021. While Kinsale is not the first town to go for a localized, postoil world (Willits, California started first), the goal is to find creative and collaborative methods to sustain the local community while moving away from imported resources – in essence, to ‘localize’ the community.

Community Mapping: ‘The Saltwater People’s Map’

In Western culture, mapping is primarily a professional exercise, carried out by planners, geographers, and surveyors. In recent years, however, a global grassroots movement has sprouted that is using maps and the map-making process to reflect community values and support socially and ecologically sustainable planning.

As a participatory and creative educational tool, community mapping is as much about process as it is about ‘getting the map done.’ By inviting citizens and residents to think first about what their community already has, rather than what it needs, community mapping focuses on what people value and what they vision for the future.

Cornerstone Building Update Last month we asked what would bring you down to Fernwood Square more often. Thanks for your responses. With Freedom Kilts now moved out (and just around the corner) we’ve got space.

One thought is for Fernwood NRG to run an ecofriendly Laundromat. Send thoughts/comments on this to info@fernwoodneighbourhood.ca.

We’ll still have space for lease. Drop by the building (at Fernwood and Gladstone) and check out the specs. Proposals welcome.

Page 4 | News and views from the heart of Fernwood | August 2007

Fernwood Village Night Market (Fernwood @ Gladstone)

Tuesday Evenings 5:30-9:30

Local Organic Produce, Baked Goods, Artisans, and Entertainment

May 29 – September 18

VillageVibe

Community mapping focusses on what people value and what they vision for the future.

Nearly two decades ago, the Tsartlip Saanich (Wsanec) First Nation created its own map of the Coast Salish territory, which includes Greater Victoria. Called the ‘Saltwater People’s Map,’ it includes the original indigenous place names with a guide describing the stories behind land and water forms. The late Tsartlip elder Dave Elliott Sr., who developed the map, was one of the last elders to fluently speak the local language. In the accompanying guide, Mr. Elliott reflects on the great loss of land and culture his people have suffered in the territory.

“I think our people have to realize that they’ve become lost somewhere … Many of the young people don’t know where they’re coming from and where they are going. It’s their future. We need to give them their past by telling them their history and we need to give them a future.”

The Saltwater People’s Map went on to inspire Common Ground, a Victoria-based mapping and planning project that provides mapping and learning resources for schools, neighbourhoods and communities wishing to undertake sustainable community development and planning projects. (Watch out for community mapping in Fernwood this fall!)

Guerilla Activism

“Guerrilla gardening is wholesome mischief. It breaks the law but improves public property,” writes Charles Dobson of the Vancouver Citizen’s Committee in The Citizen’s Handbook: A Guide to Building Community. Because its

wholesomeness is clearly apparent, some cities have started to institutionalize guerrilla gardening, with programs that invite local residents to ‘adopt’ and plant traffic circles, boulevards, and other pieces of public property.

Inspired by the guerilla gardening spirit, last summer the neighbourhood group Streets Are For People turned a parking spot in Toronto’s Kensington Market into a garden. Squatting in a street parking spot, residents filled an old car with two tonnes of dirt and planted herbs, flowers, grass, and a shrub in this Community Vehicular Transformation Project. The chef at a neighbouring restaurant continues to make good use of this unconventional garden.

One example of guerilla activism that has been undertaken on a community level is the Other Urban Repair Squad (OURS). This past June, the vigilante community cyclist group spray-painted an illegal bike lane along a stretch of Bloor Street, one of the busiest and cyclist-unfriendly streets in downtown Toronto. To make the paths appear legitimate, the painters stenciled the city’s bike logo – a bicycle and large diamond – along the road as well. The effort was meant to protest how long it has taken the City to expand its bike lane program. Toronto is years behind other cities in becoming bicycle friendly.

While money has been allocated to the Toronto Bike Plan for years, it has simply not been spent. After years of inaction, cyclists have not been left with many choices but to do the work for the City; the Urban Repair squad is just showing the City how easy it can be. “If you want progress, you gotta go guerilla!” writes one blogger in Spacing Wire, a Toronto bike blog.

A Path Less Taken

Why do we care what people in Toronto and Kinsale are doing? We care because we can learn from their stories, just as other communities can learn from ours. From community planning to reinvigorating local histories to showing the City ‘how it’s done,’ there is strength in the diversity of approaches to sustainable municipal and community practices. Hundreds – if not thousands – of neighbourhoods and communities around the globe are working towards critical but constructive approaches to social change through strategies that transform common obstacles into collective opportunities.

In September, Fernwood NRG will continue on its creative path as ‘positive deviants’ to define, determine, discover, design, discern, and disseminate neighbourhoodscale solutions to globally imperative issues. Following the renovation of the Cornerstone, the success of the Café and the approval for our Yukon Street affordable housing project, we need to celebrate the fruition of Fernwood’s ‘resident powered neighbourhood evolution,’ to regroup, refocus, and move ahead. To that end, this fall we are hosting our second Fernwood Forum and coordinating a Fernwood Placemaking workshop, facilitated by Heike Schmidt and with Frank D’Ambrosio as the guest speaker.

We have also planned a Fernwood Harvest Project to follow up on the wildly successful Fernwood Fruit tree mapping project.

Margaret Mead once wrote: “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever does.”

Localization and neighbourhood action takes advantage of our ingenuity, and helps build thriving communities. By strengthening responsible citizenship, and coming up with fresh approaches to entrenched social problems through creative local engagement, we just may be able to restore planetary health, one neighbourhood at a time.

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever does.

Denise Savoie, MP A Voice for Victoria in Ottawa 970 Blanshard Street 363-3600 www.denisesavoie.ca

VillageVibe

Our Office is Open to Serve You Community Office 1084 Fort Street, Victoria P: (250) 952-4211 F: (250) 952-4214 carole.james.mla@leg.bc.ca www.opposition.bc.ca

Carole James, MLA Victoria - Beacon Hill

August 2007 | www.fernwoodneighbourhood.ca | Page 5

Photo: Rob Hughes

Like a shoe on a wire

>> by Caitlin Croteau Look up, look waaay, waaay up, and you might catch a glimpse of a curiously out-of-place item dangling above your head. The “Shoes of Fernwood,� have been a regular fixture for the nine years I’ve lived here, and I’m sure they’ve been around since some of the lifers were wee. The Shoes have managed to successfully integrate themselves into our local environment to such an extent that most Fernwoodians don’t even notice them anymore. That is, until a new pair pops up on the power line across from Haegart Park, or down the block from Fernwood Square.

Apparently this Shoe invasion has become an issue all over the world. From Oslo to Melbourne, Savannah to Chilliwack, children play soccer (or hockey) in the streets, unaware of the ogling objects suspended above.

In North America, the act of hoisting the shoes up that high has been christened shoe flinging or shoefiti, though whether or not the Shoes get up there with assistance, or on their own initiative is debatable.

Where did they come from? Who or what put them up there? Will the Shoes eventually overrun the indigenous species, leaving us all barefoot except for an occasional sandal sighting?

Theories abound: the most common answer in the urban landscape is that the shoes are hung up to mark out the territory of local gangs or to indicate the whereabouts of a drug house. I have some trouble believing that the

The explanation? The Shoes are the only things left behind from an alien abductee. pair of immaculate pink runners decorating the wire adjacent to my home are an indication that my elderly neighbour has a grow op in her basement. This also doesn’t apply to the numbers of Shoes found on power lines in rural areas.

An extremely popular hypothesis among the more creative in our society is that the Shoes are related to alien activity. People have claimed to see new Shoes on wires in areas where there have been recent UFO sightings. The explanation? The Shoes are the only things left behind from an alien abductee. Either the Shoes get tangled in the wires on the way up, or aliens are rather wasteful and throw away what they feel they don’t need.

So, are Fernwoodians in danger of being taken over? I’d say not. As mysteriously as the Shoes appear they also disappear, leaving the total number hanging on neighbourhood power lines at any given time pretty much stable. Make sure you’ve tucked your own shoes away at night though, and keep your eyes open for any nocturnal activity coming from your closet. We don’t want our own shoes getting any ideas.

gleanings :

Live earth gardening

While watching the Live Earth concerts recently I got to thinking of ways to become as ‘green’ as possible in the garden. I am beginning to incorporate these into my life as I deepen my commitment to being as environmentally responsible as I possibly can. one | Don’t use herbicides and pesticides, and use chemical fertilizers as little as possible. It all adds up so we must keep every little bit of this earth as safe as possible for all of us to co-exist: birds, insects, micro-bugs, reptiles, and us mammals. We can have a beautiful, healthy yard and garden without these poisons; for centuries people used ‘natural’ ways as a means to deter pests and encourage plants to grow. Compost and natural soil amendments (bonemeal, dolomitic lime, organic fertilizers) are much better for the soil. ‘Seasoil’ is an excellent local organic fertilizer. To make your own compost, buy cones from the Victoria Compost Center for kitchen scraps; all lawn, leaves, plant trimmings, and culled plants can be composted in a pile, bag, or box. The Compost Education Center (on Chambers) has good info on composting. two | Buy in bulk and avoid excess packaging.

You can order loads of compost, seasoil, gravel, soil amendments, or you can pick them up in your own pails or bags. I recycle plastic plant pots and trays (many garden centers take them, as does Glendale Gardens up on Quayle Rd). Otherwise put them in the bluebox or the plastic recycling depot at the Fernwood Community Center (second Saturday of each month). Twigs and branches from pruning can be used for staking. Clay pots can be used as mulch if broken up. three | Use gravel instead of cement for paths and drives. Rain can get to the ground water and feed surrounding trees. (Pea gravel creates a lovely, natural look as well.)

four | Buy as locally as possible. Victoria is such a hotbed of gardeners that there are now many plant sales in the spring in malls, driveways, front yards, and at local public gardens where the proceeds benefit the garden: Government House, Abkhazi and UVic Finnerty gardens in the spring, ongoing at Glendale gardens and Victoria Horticultural Society monthly meetings. The plants are cheaper, truly local, and you get to meet other gardeners.

Try seeds and clippings! five | Grow food crops: veggies, berries, and fruits.

It’s easier than you think, but do a little research first. If you have little space, grow in containers on decks and balconies or intersperse with your flowers! You can sell your extra organic veggies, fruits, berries, and flowers at the Tuesday Market in the Fernwood Square or on the street where you live, or do trades. Or better yet, donate your extra fruit and veggies to the Fruit Tree Project and the Good Food Box at Fernwood NRG or Mustard Seed food bank. six | Mulch your beds and around trees with compost to conserve water. Water wisely: early morning and evenings – by hand or drip hoses is best, using timers.

Pay attention to your soil and rainfall and put the right plant in the right spot. seven | Plant a tree – they clean the air and are ‘home’ for wildlife. I have a birdfeeder that I keep stocked in the winter, and a birdbath I keep clean and full in the summer. I have planted flowers and shrubs that attract and feed butterflies and bees. (We need bees to pollinate our food crops.) Your garden feeds and shelters wildlife of all types – we can encourage this with our plant choices and by not using poisons. A natural eco-system will develop, with ‘helpers’. eight | Avoid plants and shrubs that need moist soil. Look for hardy native plants, old standards and drought tolerant varieties.

*EROME S 'REAT (OMES ĂœĂœĂœÂ°Â?iĂ€ÂœÂ“iÂŤi>VÂœVŽ°Vœ“

7HY 0AY 2ENT 9OUR &ERNWOOD 3PECIALIST 4 DIRECT

Page 6 | News and views from the heart of Fernwood | August 2007

Ă?>k >dbkq lc @e^kdb+Ă?

)F YOU COULD OWN A BEDROOM BATH

SQ FT &ERNWOOD HOME FOR OUT OF POCKET MORTGAGE PAYMENTS OF JUST MONTHLY WHY WOULD YOU PAY THAT TO RENT A SIMILAR HOME )F YOU VE THOUGHT OF BUYING CALL ME FOR DETAILS ) AM AN h!GENT OF #HANGEv BECAUSE MY JOB AND PLEASURE IS HELPING PEOPLE BECOME HOMEOWNERS -AKE THE DREAM YOUR REALITY

4IME TO SELL YOU HOME #ALL ME FOR EXCELLENCE IN REAL ESTATE SERVICE MARKETING -Y FREE NO OBLIGATION CONSULTATION WILL HELP YOU DETERMINE THE MARKET VALUE OF YOUR HOME -ORE INFO AT WWW JEROMEPEACOCK COM OR CALL ME DIRECTLY AT 4

6ˆVĂŒÂœĂ€Âˆ>Â˝ĂƒĂŠÂŁĂƒĂŒĂŠ }i˜VĂž 6>˜VÂœĂ•Ă›iÀÊ ĂƒÂ?>˜`Â˝ĂƒĂŠ >Ă€}iĂƒĂŒ ÂŁxä‡näxĂŠ Â?ÂœĂ›iĂ€`>Â?i * \ĂŠĂ“xä‡În{‡nÂŁĂ“{

*ÂœĂœiĂ€i`ĂŠLÞÊ6ˆVĂŒÂœĂ€Âˆ>Â˝ĂƒĂŠ ,i>Â?ĂŠ ĂƒĂŒ>ĂŒiĂŠ >ÀŽiĂŒÂˆÂ˜}ĂŠ/i>“ÊJ

ĂŠ , 7"" ĂŠ / Â›Ăˆq£™ÓÎÊ , 7"" ĂŠ, Ê­ /ĂŠ -/" ÂŽ 777°* "

, / 6 ° " Ê

VillageVibe

faces of Fernwood :

Celtic roots

>> by Susan Salvati I had a chance to hear Jeremy Walsh a few weeks ago at the Fernwood Inn. That evening, jamming with somebody he’d never met before, he had the room grooving with his powerful, soulful blues. There was electricity in the air; the audience was fully engaged.

It was difficult not to be, Walsh’s strong voice pulled everybody along for the ride.

Though not presently a resident of Fernwood, Jeremy is nonetheless a bit of a fixture in the neighbourhood. He grew up in Vic West. When I ask if he was born into a musical family he describes how his parents listened to a lot of what he calls ‘Newfoundland Country,’ a blend of country and Celtic music from the 70s and 80s. In grade four, he got to try his hand at the ukulele, complete with home-made blue velvet case made by his dad, and there was no going back. Jeremy played in the band from grade six onward, including time with the Esquimalt High Jazz

Newfoundland Celtic music. He set out to learn as much as he could about his Celtic heritage. He studied carefully the likes of the Chieftains, the Clancy Brothers and the Dubliners, singing to himself in the mirror “for hours and

band Scruj MacDuhk, whose music can be described as Celtic old-time folk-fusion. With this group he “became indoctrinated into different folk styles,” and in 2000 the band won two awards at the Prairie Music Awards. Jeremy returned to Victoria in 2000 and released his first solo CD in 2002. He then brought together The Jeremy Walsh Band which played high energy Celtic/Folk-Fusion music with a World Beat influence. In 2004, Jeremy’s son Noah was born and for a time Jeremy put away the guitar to take up carpentry. Now it’s time for the music again. In May, Jeremy put out his second CD, a high-energy folk rock offering. Presently his band is touring in Canada.

Seems like Jeremy’s onto something. In April of this year, he won the award for Best Songwriter of the Year at the Vancouver Island Music Awards. He’s in a good place.

When I ask him what is his definition of success is he says, “I feel like it’s to be happy with what you’re doing in your life.” Guitar and cassette recorder at the ready to catch the inspiration when it hits, Jeremy is doing just that.

When I ask him what is his definition of success is he says, “I feel like it’s to be happy with what you’re doing in your life.”

Band. It wasn’t until he was in grade eleven that he finally picked up the guitar and he explains that he didn’t know he could sing until he was in grade twelve. “I just started doing it,” he says.

Jeremy graduated in 1991 and as a young communist went to Russia in 1992 for six months. It was there that he describes having a strong premonition that he needed to be true to his cultural roots, the deep, rich roots of

hours [and] months and months on end,” but felt he was unable to learn enough. He decided “there was more than this” and took off for Ireland in 1995. He went to Ireland to drink in the music at its source. For a year, Jeremy played music three to four nights a week, developing his pub repertoire.

His dedication paid off. After returning to Victoria he got a call in 1997 to go to Winnipeg to join the

Catch The Jeremy Walsh Band on August 3rd and 4th at the Fernwood Inn from 8:30 -11:00 for a fabulous show. Opening for the band will be Palomitas de Maiz, a Middle Eastern Belly Dancer and Percussion Duo. If you miss them, you get a second chance. The Jeremy Walsh Band is headlining at Fernfest on Labour Day Weekend.

See you there.

A night at the Fernwood Market

Photo: Bonnie Groening

>> by Anne Cookson

@

VillageVibe

The Fernwood Market is thriving this year.

This is the result of organization and the selection of vendors. The location in Fernwood Square is perfect and the market serves the community as new and experienced vendors display their creative talents. The vendors sell a variety of products from baked goods to photography, artwork, and plants.

Market coordinator Jayne Silvester Smith wants to be sure everyone is having a good time. “Our market is in a growth period and word is getting out by way of advertising and word of mouth with a small steady of increase of customers each week,” she says. “This is my neighbourhood and I am proud of it and want to share it.”

One of the attractions this year is FoodRoots, an organization that sells local organic fresh produce from island farmers. People look through the assortment of apples, tomatoes, lettuce, strawberries, potatoes and patiently wait in line as each item is weighed and gently placed in a bag. “I love coming here every Tuesday,” comments Fernwood resident Rob Hughes, “It’s a great place to buy my fresh fruits and vegetables.”

People enjoy strolling by, talking to the vendors, sampling juicy strawberries, and listening to the lively Wilf Davies music band. Children are entertained as they run to catch the large soap bubbles made by Terry Wilson, known as the bubble man.

Samantha Robins, a plant biologist, has her own gardening business Robins Nest Horticultural Services, which opened in 2006. She sells fresh salads, fruits, plants, and herbs. Robins has a passion for gardening. “I spend

countless hours of time in the garden,” remarks Robins.

“I need to find my niche in the local community.”

Jen Preston makes paperback cardboard journals with line drawings on the front cover. This is her fourth week at the market. “I am a visual artist,” explains Preston, “so it’s nice to see people can support us [artists] and the local farmers. The market is a nice community support network.”

Vivian Rich and Jack Kelly’s paperback children’s storybooks of nursery rhymes, quaint magnets, and small gift boxes are a popular attraction. “I wanted to publish my own books says Rich. “We started reprinting gardening books, then in 2000 we started doing children’s books.” Rich says she loves being creative. “We have something new every week,” remarks Kelly, “and it’s our third time being at the market.”

Vera has been coming to the market for three years. “I enjoy the people and vendors; there is always something new every Tuesday,” she says, “I enjoy the neighbourhood it’s got a good feel about it everyone is friendly.”

John Grazley has just come for the first time. “I just enjoy looking around seeing the variety and community developing in Fernwood. I am happy to see there’s a sense of neighbourhood.”

Binetou Toure, originally from South Africa who now resides in Gordon Head, is impressed with the market. “I heard about the market from my friend this is her first time,” remarks Toure “I will be selling African food next week.”

The Fernwood market runs Tuesday evenings from 5.30 – 9.00pm in Fernwood Square at Gladstone and Fernwood.

August 2007 | www.fernwoodneighbourhood.ca | Page 7

what’s on in Fernwood August 2007

W Th

F

S

S

M

T

W

Th

1

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

2

Art, Theatre, and Entertainment Live Entertainment at Cornerstone Café, 1301 Gladstone Ave. Every Friday: local/touring performers, 8:00 – 10:00pm.

Live Music at J.K. Do Forno Cafe Fernwood Square. Free! Mondays: Bill Cino, 6:30 - 9:00pm. Seeking musicians for other days. Call for info: 386-8446.

Live Music at Fernwood Inn 5 nights per week, including an open mike on Thursdays, 8:30 - 11:30pm.

1302 Gladstone Ave. Live Music at Logan’s Pub 1821 Cook St. For listings, check out www.loganspub.com.

Call for Fernwood Artists Seeking Artists with studios in Fernwood for the first Fernwood Art Studio Tour. Planning for Spring 2008. Also, discussing Fernwood Artists’ Directory.

Contact: Ritha Mason ritha@uvic.ca or Deryk Houston dhouston@coastnet.com Call for Submissions from Fernwood musicians and poets to be featured on our third Fernwood CD! james@fernwoodneighbourhood.ca Victoria Bluegrass Assoc. Jam Ongoing Tuesdays, 7:30 - 10:30pm.

Orange Hall, Fernwood Road. $2 to play, free to listen. (Last Tuesday of month is open stage/feature night; cost varies).

Belfry Theatre 2007-08 Season Announced! For info: http://www.belfry.bc.ca or call Belfry Box Office - 385-6815 Intrepid Theatre The Fringe: 21st Annual Victoria Fringe Theater Festival, August 23rd to September 2nd, For info: www. intrepidtheatre.com or call 383-2663.

Kids & Families Free kids soccer camp in Fernwood Do you want to attend a free summer soccer camp? If so, then Opportunitas Aequa has a Soccer Camp for you: soccer skills training, games, fun activities, a tournament, and a barbeque.

Ages 6-14. Monday thru Saturday, August 13th thru 18th, 9:00am - 1:00pm, Vic High School field. (Local soccer coaches & volunteers also needed.) To register, email: james@fernwoodneighbourhood. ca. The camp is run by Opportunitas Aequa, a local charitable society, with

F

S

10 11

S

M

12 13

T

W

Th

14 15

16

support from the Fernwood NRG. For more information about OA, please visit www.equal-opportunity.ca Community Family Day Fernwood NRG invites families to come and get involved in Community Day family-directed and facilitated programming. Mondays, 9:30 - 11:30am.

Fernwood Community Center Gym, Free!

Parent & Tot Playgroup Snacks/Crafts/Circle Time. Ongoing Tuesdays & Thursdays. 9:30 - 11:30am, Fernwood Community Center Gym, $1 per family,.

Rhythm Circle Time Drop-in: 10 Weeks per session. Tuesdays 3:00 - 4:00 pm, Fernwood Community Center Multi-Purpose Room. Free!

Mother Goose Songs, rhymes & stories. Tuesdays.

1:00 - 2:30pm, Fernwood Community Center Multi-Purpose Room. Preregister - 10 weeks per session. Free! ($2 for songbook) Call 381-1552 Ext.22 to register and for info.

Youth, Adults & Seniors Indoor Soccer Drop-in Co-ed Adult (18+); Ongoing Mondays, 8:45 -10:45pm, Fernwood Community Center Gym. $3 per person.

Drop-in Floorhockey Drop-in Co-ed Adult (18+);Ongoing Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7:00 - 9:30pm, and Saturdays, 2 - 4:30pm. Fernwood Community Center Gym. $4, or get a punchcard; $40/11 sessions. We accept Sports Trader Bucks & Canadian Tire Money at face value!

Free Internet and Computer Access Complete your one-time registration and then get online through the Community Access Program. 9:30am to 5:30pm, Monday to Friday. Fernwood Community Center Community Room. Free!

Free Yoga Tues, 10:30am - 12:00pm. Fernwood Community Center MPR Room.

Acupuncture NADA Protocol, Tuesdays, 2:30 – 4:30pm. Fernwood Community Center MPR Room.

Falun Gong Peaceful meditation practice. Wed, 5:00 - 7:00pm. Fernwood Community Center MPR Room. Everyone welcome, FREE!

F

S

17 18

S

M

T

W Th

19 20 21 22 23

Fernwood Autumn Glow (55+) Gentle exercise, lunch & activities.

Fridays, 11:00am. Fernwood Community Center MPR Room. $5.50 for lunch

F

S

24 25

S

M

26 27

T

W

Th

F

28

29

30 31

villagevibe Published by Fernwood NRG (Fernwood Neighbourhood Resource Group)

Special Events Fern Fest 2007!

Labour Day Weekend Outdoor Concert of the Year! Aug 31, Sept 1 & 2. Stephenson Park. We are looking for volunteers and children’s entertainers! Email: james@ fernwoodneighbourhood.ca Fernwood NRG Food Security Collective FNRG Food Security Collective will not meet in August. Monthly meetings will resume in September. Check the September VIBE calendar for details.

The Fernwood Fruit Tree Project!

Come see us at our table at the Fernwood Tuesday Night Market. Check out our interactive Fruit Tree Map in Cornerstone Cafe! For info, email foodsecurity@fernwoodneighbourhood. ca Cock-a-doodle-doo!

Interested in giving and/or attending a raising urban chickens workshop in Fernwood? For info.: foodsecurity@ fernwoodneighbourhood.ca Cob Workshops Learn how to mix, build & sculpt cob! To register: call Stephanie 595-3047 or write terracobba@hobbithomes.ca Cob Workshop at Cornerstone Cafe August 17th, 18th & 19th (Friday, Saturday & Sunday) $30/one day; $50/two days; $65/three days. Build community & create interior cob seats with Terracobba Designs. Register by August 15th One-day Earthen Plaster Workshop Saturday, August 25th. $30 + bring potluck lunch. Learn how to use natural materials to plaster an artistically sculpted cob oven.

Fernwood’s Monthly Outrageous Recycling Day (2nd Saturday of every Month). New Hours beginning Saturday, August 11! 10am - 1pm. Back of Fernwood Community Center. You won’t believe what you can recycle: plastics of all kinds (from the bread bag clips to the slip and slide), Styrofoam packing, Styrofoam food trays, even electronics and foil-lined coffee bags. But PLEASE make sure it’s all clean. By donation.

1240 Gladstone Street Victoria, BC V8T 1G6 T 250.381.1552 F 250.381.1509 villagevibe@fernwood neighbourhood.ca www.fernwoodneighbourhood.ca Editor: Lisa Helps Assistant Editor: Trish Richards Photographer: Veronique da Silva Contributors: Christina Chan Anne Cookson Caitlin Croteau Bonnie Groening Margaret Hantiuk Rob Hughes Alanna Mayne Susi Porter-Bopp Susan Salvati The views expressed in the Village Vibe do not necessarily reflect the views of Fernwood NRG.

Fernwood Village Night Market Local Organic Produce, Baked Goods, Artisans and Entertainment. Tuesday Evenings, 5:30 - 9:30pm, May 29 thru September 18, Fernwood Square (Fernwood @ Gladstone).

Green Drinks & Green Lunch Neither Green Drinks nor Green Lunch will be held in August. Green Drinks resumes Tuesday, September 11th at a new downtown location. Green Lunch resumes Wednesday, September 22 at the Fernwood Inn. Check the September VIBE calendar for details.

Fernwood Business Network Launch of mutual support network for Fernwood businesses, Monday, October 1, 10:00a.m. – Noon, Fernwood Inn, 1302 Gladstone Ave. For additional information please call or write to Roger Colwill, at 598-0077 or r.colwill@shaw.ca

TUESDAYS! Beer and Burger – 100% Ground prime rib burger or nutburger and a Pint $7.95 1302 Gladstone

412-2001

Under new ownership!

Page 8 | News and views from the heart of Fernwood | August 2007

VillageVibe