Cambridgeport meeting notes 4/6/10 8:30am- 9:30am

Attending: Alex Van Praagh, Monica Velgos, Andy Hrycyna, Susan Shelkrot, Shirley Harvey, Alice Gugelmann, Francey Slater

Work Day – Date will most likely be changed from 4/17 to 4/24 or 4/25 (Alex will confirm). The main task for this workday will be to install the 3 planters at the front on the Building (Elm St). Alex will be point person, and would like 1-3 helpers (preferably with carpentry skills). Start time is 10am. Monica will solicit volunteers in newsletter

Planters – material is yet undetermined, Alex is looking for best supplier and cost. If we go with cedar, it will most likely be more like $250 per planter for the wood, coming to $300 with all hardware. The dimensions of the box are (roughly) 22” long x 22” deep x 30” tall.

The question of painting the wall behind the platers was rasied: do we want to paint a solid color or include some artistic elements (flowers, butterflies, etc..)? Alex will ask his wife Whitney (www.witcards.com) if she is interested/available to help. NOTE: the actual color of the trim on the school is forest green, not aqua, as shown in the picture.

Filling planters with soil and planting them will come next. CitySprouts generally uses loam and compost from Cambridge Bark and Loam. Andy has researched a soil-less mix that is good for containers. A well-draining mix is crucial. Selecting plants for the planter boxes will also be considered, as they receive limited sunlight (Alex’s estimate was 4 hrs).

Donations – Alice is looking into paint (Sherwin Williams), lumber & hardware (Home Depot) donations

Water Source – Carl informed me that there are NO water sources on the outside of the building, and suggested that we approach Dana Ham of CPS to install. There is a fire hydrant opening on the front of the building, and a water fountain in the playground, so installing taps may be an option. Alice and I spoke in greater depth with Carl about running a hose from the custodian’s room (inside the gate and down the ramp) up to the beds on Elm st, and we also thought about installing a rain barrel at the front that we could just fill from the hose and use for hand watering. Another option is to see if a classroom teacher or three would like to adopt the task of watering (means a lot of lugging water…)

May 20th – Tile (and other) celebration is scheduled for May 20th, which will also be a time to unveil the front planters to the school community.

Playground beds – Jane met with John Nardone, Kelly Writer, Dana Ham and Dick Woods about the potential installation of garden beds in the North corner of the playground. The fence cutting is off the table, but there is the possibility of building a bed or two flush with the fence. The question of clearance with the tire swing remains, and we hope to hear back in the next week about this.

Action Items:

· Alex will continue to research materials and pricing, including recycled plastic lumber
· Alex will confirm work day date, 4/24 or 4/25
· Monica will recruit skilled volunteers
· Alice is contacting retailers about donations
· Alex will ask Whitney about artistic paintings
· CitySprouts will contact DPW about further excavation under the Locust trees

Next meeting: April 27th, 8:30 am