Author Archives:

Gardening & More: Making mini flower creations

SPRINGVILLE — If you hunt, or know someone who does, you can utilize old bullet casings as containers for miniature flower arrangements.

That is just one of many ideas that I picked up, this spring, at an exhibit at the National Garden Clubs convention, held in Buffalo.

Carolyn Doerflein, National Garden Clubs accredited master flower show judge, created the exhibit, with lots of information about creating miniature floral designs.

Miniature flower arrangements in flower shows cannot exceed 5 inches in any direction and the rule is sometimes set at 3 inches. At home, you can make your arrangement any size you want.

Use a miniature floral arrangement in a shadow box, a small bathroom, on a breakfast tray, on a windowsill or on any small shelf. Use individual, miniature designs to coordinate with a centerpiece on the dinner table.

Be creative, when it comes to the containers you use. You can use silver or brass, dull or shiny bullets. To make the casing more stable, attach a metal washer to the bottom, using Liquid Nails® or Gorilla Glue®. Add twisted wire, for a decorative touch.

Doerflein also demonstrated miniature flower arrangements, created in a polymer clay vase. Make the vase in any size, shape and color you like. Use nail polish on the inside and outside, to seal it.

Even a small seashell can be a container. Glue a flat button on the bottom, to make it more stable.

Other container ideas include lipstick tubes, doll house and miniature house accessories, trinket boxes, plumbing and electrical connectors, jewelry pieces and findings, wooden spools, drawer pulls and knobs, salt shakers and cellars, corks, egg cups, ink wells, nuts and bolts, stiffened fabric, incense burners, toothpick holders, thimbles, beads, napkin rings, small caps and lids, small toys, perfume bottles and jam dishes.

Containers this size are also a brilliant solution to the problem of where to display children’s bouquets. Those little flower arrangements are often quite stubby, because little children don’t know, yet, that you are supposed to pick the stem along with the flower.

Other than the flowers your kids pick, what could you put in a container that tiny?

Many large plants have small parts.

A huge grapevine has tiny tendrils and a large boxwood or barberry shrub has small leaves.

A 50-foot maple tree has small seeds in a cool package. I call those helicopters, or “whirligigs.”

An allium flower might be a large ball, but you can pull the flower apart and use the individual florets.

Look at flower buds, house plants, potpourri, grasses, seed pods, pine needles, cones, sedum, succulents and plants with stunted growth or new growths.

Some of my favorite plants for miniature designs include baby’s breath, kalanchoe, pokeweed flowers and dwarf hostas.

Doerflein had encouraging words for people who think they might not be able to tackle floral design. Design principles are universal. How many of us have arranged furnishings in our homes or selected accessories for an outfit? “You are already a designer!” she said.

Connie Oswald Stofko is publisher of Buffalo-NiagaraGardening.com, the online gardening magazine for Western New York. Email Connie@BuffaloNiagaraGardening.com.

Floral designer creates holiday arrangements for York club

Leave a reply

YORK, Maine — The Old York Garden Club held its membership meeting at Fellowship Hall of the First Parish Church in York on Wednesday, Nov. 14. Guest speaker Diane Bullock presented her program, “Happy Holidays – Yes, You Can Do It.”

She created several floral designs for the audience and suggested that members explore their own gardens for seedpods, leaves, and branches that could be incorporated into an arrangement, sometimes with a touch of spray paint for sparkle. Diane is a past state president of the Garden Club Federation of Mass. Inc. and has distinguished herself as chairperson of the New England Flower Show.

On Monday, Nov. 19, Old York Garden Club held a holiday design workshop. Members brought their flowers, greens, gourds and plant material. Design Advisor Becky Renner provided instruction in form, placement, color and mechanics.

Working together, members created their own floral arrangement for their Thanksgiving table.

Next month on Dec. 12, Old York Garden Club will host its annual greens workshop, a do-it-yourself workshop for members who want to create wreaths, swags, and centerpieces for the holidays. Board members provide homemade soups for lunch.

Design Chairperson Becky Renner will be on hand to consult with design suggestions and bow making ideas.

His driving passion: Butcher loves cars, loves guiding students more

Leave a reply

His driving passion: Butcher loves cars, loves guiding students more

Published 12:01am Monday, November 26, 2012

FERRIDAY — Most people know Fred Butcher as the athletic director at Natchez High School and, previously, long-time principal at Ferriday High School.

Few know, however, that he has a love for classic cars, and for the longest time wanted to own one.

“Four to five years ago, my wife, mother-in-law and children gave me a gift that would enhance my dream to get a fancy car,” Butcher said.

And he eventually purchased a 1972 Cutlass Oldsmobile, which Butcher said came with original equipment.

“I actually had it in the (NHS homecoming) parade,” Butcher said. “My plan is to have it in a condition to where, when I retire, I can go to car shows.”

His love for the ’72 Cutlass is one of many hats Butcher wears. He is also a member of the Concordia Parish School Board.

Butcher said with the help of mechanics Eric Stewman and George Barber, he’s able to keep the car in good condition.

“Finding parts is not easy,” Butcher said. “I have very good mechanics. With them, we can either figure out the problem or almost make a part.”

Butcher said he tries to rub the car down at least once a week to keep it looking spiffy.

“If the weather is nice and I’m riding around in it, I might rub it down a couple of times a week,” he said.

If Butcher has a first love, though, it’s not his classic car, but the many students he’s been able to impact over the years. A life-long resident of Concordia Parish, Butcher spent 24 years as principal at Ferriday High School before taking over NHS athletics five years ago. During his time in Ferriday, Butcher said several things he did helped prepare him for the job he has now.

“Being principal calls for a high level of organization,” Butcher said. “You’re trying to hire a staff that can take care of all the programs.”

That includes Ferriday athletics, which Butcher said he stressed the importance of while he was over the school.

“When I went to Ferriday High, the athletic program wasn’t very good,” Butcher said. “We hired some good coaches there.”

The biggest thing, though, was instilling discipline in the student body, and Butcher said the key there was being fair and consistent.

“You have to impose discipline to a certain point until they hopefully become self-disciplined,” Butcher said of the students.

And Butcher said one of the most rewarding things was seeing a young student come into high school and leave as a mature young adult with dreams for their lives.

Academics and athletics both provide a means for discipline to be instilled in young people, and Butcher said the two complement each other well when it comes to discipline.

“If you can improve your discipline in the classroom, you can improve it in athletics,” Butcher said. “A lot of people see sports as a strength-and-conditioning game, but a lot of times you have to make decisions in a split second (when you’re playing).”

After so many years in Concordia Parish, Butcher said he was ready for a change when the NHS athletic director position came open.

“I felt I had the background and administrative expertise, because we had some success with athletics and band (at Ferriday High),” Butcher said. “I thought it would be a good fit for me, the students and the coaching staffs.”

NHS’s athletic programs have seen good success under Butcher, but Butcher said the credit doesn’t go to him alone.

“If you’re surrounded by good coaching staffs, it helps with your academic program and with discipline,” Butcher said. “For most good coaches, time on the clock doesn’t mean anything to them, because most are workaholics.”

In addition, the NHS Booster Club also plays a big role in the success of the programs.

“They’ve always been important, but for the last three years since the funds have gotten short, they’ve stepped up and gone above and beyond duty,” Butcher said.

“They’re few in numbers, but they make a bold statement. They always support us and come up with new ideas, and that’s what we need, not only for fundraisers, but discipline- and academic-wise.”

NHS head football coach Lance Reed said Butcher’s been a positive influence in the entire athletic department since taking over.

“He’s done a great job,” Reed said. “He’s the ultimate professional. He’s the kind of guy you can learn a lot from, and he’s all about the kids doing things the right way.”

Reed also said Butcher’s previous administrational experience has been invaluable for the position Butcher is in now.

“He has a wealth of knowledge and experience,” Butcher said. “He knows the best methods to handle certain situations, and he’s really an asset to the program.”

Since Butcher enjoys helping students mature into young adults, Butcher said being over athletics is a good venue for him.

“It helps mold character in young people,” Butcher said. “Good coaches probably do 50 percent coaching and 50 percent counseling. Teaching is an important part of that also. When you combine coaching and teaching, you have the opportunity to mold character.”

Butcher also has the unique perspective of observing both Natchez-Adams and Concordia Parish school districts, since Butcher is a board member in Concordia.

“It’s a challenge,” Butcher admitted. “I can learn from both situations, but the common denominator is the kids are the No. 1 focus in both places.”

The size of the student population and the need to develop character in both student bodies are two major similarities between both districts, Butcher said.

“Character building is something that’s important for all kids in this day and age,” Butcher said. “You also have to work hard to get the parents involved.”

Even with all of his time as an athletic director, school board member and classic car owner, Butcher still has a surprise or two up his sleeve.

“I do landscaping on the side,” Butcher said. “I like playing around in my yard. I do a few jobs in the fall, but I concentrate on it in the spring when the plants are fresh and the weather is warmer.”

Gardening: Perfect all rounder

Leave a reply

Tags:

gardening,

lifestyle

Blossoms are a favourite and manuka-derived honey has no equal.

When we’d finished being gobsmacked by the impressive landscaping and gardening efforts among the 80 gardens in the Bay of Plenty’s Garden and Artfest, The Landscaper and I took time out to attend the birthday party of my niece’s 1-year-old daughter.

In their backyard, notable for its almost complete lack of garden, I found something that sent me scurrying inside for scissors and a plastic bag.

It’s probably well documented that I’ve never been a fan of manuka, but this one was something else.

“What’s that called?” I demanded of my niece, who is unlikely even to be able to recognise a daisy.

“Don’t know,” she said cheerily, “but the tag’s probably still on it.”

The Landscaper found the tag, which identified the glorious mauve manuka as Leptospermum phoenix – my new best friend. Its big, dense, mauve flowers arrive in mid-spring and are said to last for ages. The plant grows to about 1.5m, can be kept bushy with regular haircuts, and is hardy in dry and cold conditions.

In the unlikely event that you find the same manuka, or some other colour that knocks your socks off, you can grow them from cuttings.

Choose new growth from the tip of the branch.

Look for twigs with soft reddish bark and multiple leaf terminals.

Cut them at a 45-degree angle about 10cm from the tip, and then slice a 5ml portion of bark from the end of the cutting to expose the vascular cambium. Keep the cuttings damp until you’re ready to pot them.

Then dip them in rooting compound and plant them to about half their length in a sandy mix that has been pre-watered and drained for about half an hour.

Put them in your propagating box if you have one, or in a plastic bag to hold moisture and heat. Keep them moist but not wet, and warm but out of direct sunlight.

Should all 20 of our mauve manuka survive the propagation process and grow into real trees, I’ll be looking for something useful to do with them. Fortunately, it seems they have many properties other than pleasing me and the bees with its extraordinary flowers.

The leaves can be combined with other plants – such as coprosma, kawkawa, hebe and ngaio – to use in vapour baths as a treatment for rheumatism.

Infusions of the bark have also been used to ease aches and pains – perfect for The Landscaper – and can have a sedative effect (perhaps not so perfect). And though I wouldn’t recommend trying the following at home, it is documented that infusions are also useful for the treatment of dandruff and skin infections, while a poultice of pounded fruit can be used to treat flesh wounds, apparently drying them up and hastening healing.

A decoction of leaves taken internally is said to help urinary complaints and treat fever, while a decoction of bark may relieve constipation and diarrhoea (presumably not both at once), treat mouth, throat and eye infections, colic, inflamed breasts, scalds and burns.

Leptostopermum scoparium contains leptospermone, which is effective for treating parasitic worms, and is also an insesecticide. And then there’s the honey, which contains high levels of the antibacterial compound methylglyoxal. Oils extracted from manuka leaves in some areas also have antibacterial and fungicidal properties. Quite the all-rounder, then.

If you’re a little shamefaced that you’ve been using your manuka only for firewood, don’t be. It burns beautifully, and makes a great barbecue.

Tricks from Tauranga

Not surprisingly, we didn’t make it around all 88 of the gardens in the Bay of Plenty New Zealand Garden and Artfest. We didn’t see the work of all 57 of the artists, either, but what we did see was enough to send us scurrying home with many new ideas.

1. We really liked this display of ceramic bathers. At first we thought it was a wall hanging, but the gardener has neatly clipped back the ivy to reveal a timber paling fence beneath, and used the foliage as a frame. Nifty.

2. Then we found the clever vege boxes – smart and good looking, and probably quite easy to achieve. Find a large, stainless steel bench – the sort of thing you occasionally see at a junk yard.

A butcher’s bench would be ideal, but even a sink bench could be used. Construct simple, wooden boxes of uniform size, fill with soil and compost, and plant with veges. They look stylish and are easy to weed because they’re at hand height. I see no reason why this could not be achieved by Saturday lunchtime.

Resident’s ‘relief’ after her visit to site and Germany

Leave a reply

THE incinerator construction site next to Weston Mill Creek seems intent on returning to its watery origins.

A week of torrential rain and the boots of about 100 construction workers have created foot-sucking ponds of mud.

ABOVE: Ruth Crawford, a nearby resident, overlooking the site. BELOW: Pile-drilling at Weston Mill

Work is well under way to build the Plymouth energy from waste plant on what used to be Weston Mill Lake, and the once-derelict site is a hive of activity.

The Ministry of Defence filled in the lake in the 1980s when it built new dry docks. That presents problems for main contractors Kier, who must drill some 600 holes up to 30 metres into the bedrock and fill them with steel-and-concrete piles.

In phase two concrete caps will link the piles to form a solid base connected to the bedrock. In effect, the incinerator will perch on 600 sturdy stilts.

I am on a tour of the site, and walking through the mud with Paul Carey, managing director of MVV Environment Devonport Ltd, the incinerator operator, and local resident Ruth Crawford.

Ruth, who lives in Talbot Gardens, is one of the incinerator’s nearest neighbours. She was taken to Germany by ITV and she visited an incinerator in the midst of housing in Frankfurt to find out how much of an anti-social neighbour it is.

“I was worried before, and the trip has set my mind at ease considerably,” she says.

“The Frankfurt incinerator was close to homes, just like here.”

Ruth says residents there did not seem bothered by it – though she does not speak German.

“I realise waste has to be got rid of somewhere, and nobody wants it in their back yard,” she explains.

“But I am definitely happier than I was this time last week. I feel so much relief.”

As we walk across the site, dwarfed by cranes, drilling rigs and mountainous earth-moving equipment, Ruth tells me that from her flat the construction work is “quite noisy, but you get used to it”.

“One of my neighbours says he feels vibrations, but I don’t.”

The sound of clanking and grinding, men wielding lump hammers against obstinate steel, the beeping of reversing juggernauts is what you would expect of a construction site.

The noise must be disturbing for near neighbours, though it is not so loud that we have to shout to be heard.

The contractors have moveable panels which are used to screen the noisiest pieces of equipment. MVV has also installed specialised noise monitoring equipment in Talbot Gardens and Savage Road as part of a requirement by Plymouth City Council.

They must stick to an average of 66 decibels over any two-hour period, Mr Carey says.

To put that in perspective, a 2004 study by the University of Edinburgh found that the average sound level for nightclubs in the UK was 96db, with some even reaching 108db.

Long before the energy from waste plant starts operating at the end of 2014, local people will have access to a tarted-up Blackies Wood, which forms a buffer between the plant and residents who will overlook it.

“The idea is to do landscaping this winter and by next summer it should be accessible,” says Mr Carey.

Earlier this year ecologists moved in and captured reptiles – mostly lizards and slow worms – from the site. They have been moved to a safe part of the woods and a “reptile basking area” has been created.

Barne Brake, which borders the site to the east, and runs into Weston Mill Creek in the south, is home to kingfishers.

We stand in one muddy patch of earth all but indistinguishable from any other and Mr Carey points out where rubbish trucks from Plymouth, Torbay and South Devon will dump their loads into a deep pit.

This will all happen indoors, out of sight and – local people must pray – out of mind.

Mr Carey insists that any odour from the rubbish will be contained, by negative pressure created by the incinerator furnace and a separate fan when the incinerator is shut down.

This will happen for up to three weeks at a time for maintenance, and when it is the incoming rubbish will be shrink-wrapped and stored until it can be burnt.

On the other side of the site another smaller patch of mud marks the foundation spot of the 95-metre chimney that will be visible from miles around.

In Frankfurt, local schoolchildren created a dragon design that was painted on to their incinerator chimney, symbolising the tame dragon inside.

It is anyone’s guess how long it will take before Plymouth’s incinerator is viewed with such affection.

Hoboken Gardens

Leave a reply

Hoboken Gardens is a family-owned and operated florist and garden center located in the coastal town of Rockport, Maine. Dave and Carole Farley began Hoboken Gardens in 1988 to extend a year-round enterprise to their original business, Farley Son Landscaping. They have been serving the mid-coast area year round with quality floral and garden center services for over 23 years.

Situated in the charm and quaintness of an old, large, wooden schoolhouse, our full service florist and gift shop offers creative and artistic floral designs and delightful gifts . Flowers can be sent worldwide with the services of FTD. Outside, our nursery offers a large and diverse selection of evergreen and deciduous shrubs and trees. Our variety and unique selection of perennials is one of the best. We have 17,000 square feet of greenhouse growing space filled with foliage plants, annuals, holiday plants, topiaries, herbs, and orchids. Our greenhouse staff is knowledgeable, polite, and helpful.

We also offer interiorscaping and plant rental services. And with our acclaimed parent company, Farley Son Landscaping, we can arrange for planting and maintenance of your purchases.

Tips to help plan your garden against bushfire risk

Leave a reply

Tags:

bushfire,

flowers,

gardening,

lifestyle,

plants,

weather

Anigozanthos (Kangaroo Paw) has a high resistance to fire.

BUSHFIRES are a naturally occurring event. Many of our native plants have adapted to deal with this and in fact many rely on fire events as part of their lifecycle.

However development adjacent to bushland areas has increased the risk of fire impacting on people and their assets.

When planning your garden and property for fire protection, it’s important to consider plants as an integral part of your overall fire protection plan.

The principles of landscaping for bush fire protection aim to:

Prevent flame impingement on the dwelling
Provide a defendable space for property protection
Reduce fire spread
Deflect and filter embers
Provide shelter from radiant heat
Reduce wind speed

Using fire-resistant plants

No plant is completely “fire-resistant” but some are more flammable than others.

Plants with broad fleshy leaves are better than those with fine hard leaves.

Those with significant amounts of volatile oils, such as the eucalypt family, which includes gums and tea-trees, should be avoided.

The influence of plant shape is a lot more subjective: low growing plants and ground covers are better than shrubs; plants with dense foliage are better than those with open airy crowns; plants which don’t retain dead material are better than those which hold lots of fuel; plants with smooth bark are better than those with ribbon and rough bark.

Fire retardant plants can absorb more of the heat of the approaching bushfire, without burning, than more flammable plants.

They can trap burning embers and sparks and reduce wind speeds near your house if correctly positioned and maintained.

Fire resistant ground covers can be used to slow the travel of a fire through the litter layer and fire resistant shrubs can be used to separate the litter layer from the trees above.

If the low flammability plants sound like ornamentals and vegetables and the highly flammable ones sound like dry bush and scrub; then you’ve got the idea.

Windbreaks

The use of trees as windbreaks is a common practice but trees also provide a useful function, trapping embers and flying debris, which would otherwise reach the house.

By reducing the wind speed, a row of trees also slows the rate of spread of a bushfire and a dense foliage traps radiant heat, lowering bush fire radiant heat.

A windbreak that allows 30-60% of the wind to pass through is ideal as less than this becomes too solid with ember laden winds being carried over the top of the break.

To be effective a windbreak must:

Be located on the side of the lot from which fire weather normally approaches
Be of sufficient length (generally 100 m minimum length)
Use smooth barked eucalypts, rainforest trees or deciduous trees
Make sure there are no breaks of sufficient size to allow winds to funnel through
Be separated by sufficient distance from the hazard so as not to be consumed and become a hazard itself

Maintenance

To maintain a garden that does not contribute to the spread of bushfires, it is necessary to plan the layout of the garden beds and take an active decision to minimise certain features in favour of other features.

Maintain a clear area of low cut lawn or pavement adjacent to the house
Keep areas raked and cleared of fuel
Use non-combustible fencing
Organic mulch should not be used in bush fire prone areas
Planting trees and shrubs such with branches that don’t overhang the roof

Plants that have a higher resistance to fire

Acer
Acacia (wattle)
Ajuga repens
Agapanthus
Acmena smithii (Lilly Pilly)
Anigozanthos (Kangaroo Paw)
Atriplex (Saltbush)
Calodendron capense ( Cape Chestnut)
Callistemon citrinus
Camellia
Caprosma
Canna Lilly
Casuarina (River She Oak)
Citrus
Delonix regia (Poinciana)
Dianella
Dicksonia antartica (Tree Fern)
Escallonia
Eucalyptus maculata (spotted gum)
Hebe
Hibiscus
Hymenosporum (Native Frangipani)
Hydrangea
Lomandra
Laurus nobilis (Laurel)
Lavender
Liquidambar
Liriope
Magnolia
Mulberry
Geranium
Photinia
Rhagodia (saltbush)
Rhododendron
Syzygium (Lilly Pilly)

To read more lifestyle stories

Fit tips for the holiday season

Leave a reply

OK, here we are again. That time of year where it is non-stop feasting and festivities. Lots of fat, sugar and alcohol — sometimes (as with certain liqueurs and eggnogs) all in one glass, other times spread out over food and drink.

Want to know how to have a good time, fulfill all the social obligations and still have a waistline come January?

There are lots of ways we can be mindful and not blow the caloric budget, yet still go out and have a nice holiday season. Here’s a list of some tips that I have compiled and shared with my clients through the years on how to get through the holiday season and not gain weight.

When you go out, wear tight clothes. Sound funny? If your waistband is digging into your tummy, you are not likely to eat your way into the next size up. You have a reminder digging in. Better yet, if it really digs in when you try to sit down.

Don’t position yourself close to the buffet table or the bar. Move to the far end of the room — that way you will really have to think about going to get some food or another drink rather than just mindlessly reaching for more while you are talking. If the conversation at the far end of the room is really fun, maybe you’ll forget about another fill-up. Tip: hang out with interesting people! You can’t talk with your mouth full.

Eat before you go out. Eat sensibly and stick to your diet and don’t be tempted by the fat, sugar, salt and chemicals that are being offered as treats. In your heart and mind you know better.

For every alcoholic drink you have, drink a glass of water. This not only keeps the calories down, it also helps you from overdoing it and getting drunk and hung over — never pleasant experiences.

Don’t forget to workout. It is easy to forgo your fitness when the fun beckons, but all the gains that you made over the last months fade if you don’t keep it up.

With exercise you get “a body back guarantee!” Kind of like brushing your teeth or washing your hair, it’s just something you need to keep doing to look good and be healthy.

Put an especially good photo of yourself on the fridge door and on the door out to the car. Do you want to mess with that? Think before you swallow. “A moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips” is a truism.

Most of the holiday “goodies” look way better than they taste. If you really need to taste some, take a small serving and enjoy that (or not) and then make a decision as to whether you’ll have some more. Is it worth it?

If you decide that you are going to eat more or drink more than usual, then workout more than usual. Calories out can balance calories in, but if you have ever checked out how long you need to be on the bicycle or the treadmill in order to rid your body of the calories in a load of ice cream, then you will realize it is a long haul. Better to limit the intake. It is actually easier.

If you are entertaining, do everyone a favor and have low-calorie, healthy snacks on hand, too. You may be especially proud of your rich and elegant desserts and appetizers, but it is a good host that thinks of others who may be trying their best to keep fit and healthy throughout the season. My favorite line when someone tries to push something on me that I really don’t want is, “That looks lovely! I’m sorry I can’t have that, for health reasons.” True words and the host cannot push any further.

I truly wish you all the very best of the upcoming six or so weeks. Have fun, see your friends and family and do your best to stay true to yourself. You don’t have to gain a lot of weight and then spend the next few months prying it back off.

Just be sensible throughout this holiday season and use a few thoughtful tricks to eat and drink responsibly.

• Jane Riley, M.S., B.A., C.P.T., C.N.A., can be reached at janerileyfitness@gmail.com, 808-212-1451 or www.janerileyfitness.com.

Residents to have a say on plans for 80 houses

Leave a reply

Residents to have a say on plans for 80 houses

6:20pm Saturday 24th November 2012 in News

By David Morgan

HOLMES Chapel residents are being urged to have their say on plans to build 80 houses in the village.

Persimmon Homes’ blueprints will be on display in the school room of the Victoria Club in Victoria Avenue between 2pm and 7pm on Friday.

Developers will also be on hand to talk to residents about the proposed site on the north side of Middlewich Road, between the Ravenscroft estate and Cotton Hall.

The scheme has yet to be formally submitted to Cheshire East Council.

Neil Follows, managing director of Persimmon Homes North West, said: “We genuinely want to gauge public opinion to ensure any application proposed by Persimmon Homes has been thoroughly considered by the community it will serve, as well as introducing them to our ideas for the site in terms of highways, ecology and landscaping.

“Our plans for the site include 80 new family homes, of which 30 per cent would be affordable.

“There would be public open space and a new children’s play area within the site and Persimmon Homes would be making contributions towards education provision, open space and sports facilities locally.”

But Stuart Gammon, chairman of Holmes Chapel Partnership, told the Guardian that the community’s initial reaction to the plans has been negative.

He said: “The general feeling is: ‘Why do we need more houses?’ “There are already more than 200 houses set to be built between the former Sanofi Aventis and Fine Decor brownfield sites which have both been given the go ahead.

“People have said we’ve got enough traffic on Middlewich Road without putting another source of traffic there.

“We could have between 80 and 150 extra cars on the road.”

Persimmon estimates that the development would generate more than £115,000 in council tax every year and almost £700,000 from the Government’s New Homes Bonus – to be spent on infrastructure.

Mr Follows said: “We see investment of this type in the north west as vital for economic recovery, creating new jobs both directly at the site and indirectly through the supply chain and within the community.”

Stuart added: “It’s important that people attend the public meeting, see what’s on offer and express their opinion.”

Those unable to attend can email feedback to: consultation.event@persimmonhomes.com

Comment now! Register or sign in below.

Vikings stadium: Good neighbor or not?

Leave a reply

“Developers hate uncertainty, but now we know there will be a stadium on the site,” said Hanson-Willis, “and we’re confident that development will follow.”

Clearly, there’s plenty of room. A scan of the area reveals at least 40 potential building sites — all of them on surface parking lots — within a six-block radius of the new stadium. (Five pivotal blocks are owned by the Star Tribune.)

Even so, the project could falter if conflicts persist among the Vikings and their government partners. The dustup over seat licenses is just one example.

Consider the budget as a whole. By NFL standards, $975 million is not a lot of money for a covered stadium. The 49ers new open-air home in Santa Clara, Calif., is expected to cost $1.2 billion by the time it opens in 2014. Recently built stadiums for the Giants/Jets (open-air) and Cowboys (retractable roof) cost $1.6 billion and $1.2 billion respectively. Apportioning costs between the building itself and its immediate surroundings is another likely point of tension.

Adding to the problem are the state’s overly restrictive rules on urban redevelopment. In most states, Minneapolis could finance new streetscapes, lighting, landscaping and other enhancements near the stadium by borrowing against the expected higher property tax revenues that those enhancements produce. Minnesota law discourages the practice. Moreover, its tax laws may have the perverse effect of making surface parking lots near the stadium more attractive as surface lots than as new homes and offices. If so, legislative attention might be needed for a first-rate project to emerge.

Despite those barriers, the team, the stadium authority and the architects are getting plenty of advice on how to proceed. Aside from ideas gathered from citizens around the state, a talented 25-member implementation committee issued last month an impressive set of guidelines.

“We’re determined not to repeat the Metrodome’s mistake of creating a district that’s a ‘no man’s land’ except on game day,” said the committee’s cochair, Thomas Fisher, dean of the College of Design at the University of Minnesota.

On the committee’s wish list: a bold, transparent building with a “retractable feature” and plenty of windows; entrances that match the current grid of streets; primary orientation toward a plaza and the downtown skyline; a design that attracts a dense, mixed-use development on adjoining blocks; a use of sustainable building materials, and an emphasis on public transit.

“If we do this right, people will want to live and work in this area,” Fisher said. “My personal view is that this should be a dense urban district with development right up to the light-rail station across from the new stadium.”

Fisher and his cochair David Wilson, managing director of Accenture’s Minneapolis office, are on the right track. The key word for a successful stadium is livability. Yes, the building must be functional, perhaps even beautiful. But above all it should express itself on a human scale at street level. It should become a creature of its new surroundings.

The stadium’s plaza, for example, should be modest in size. The three-block expanse depicted in early drawings could easily become desolate and windswept for 330 days a year. Better to encourage clusters of new, mixed-use buildings around a smaller plaza to create a lively stadium district. Tree-lined streets with diagonal parking could be closed off on game day to create a pedestrian zone that accommodates both on-street tailgating and “railgating” (food trucks along 5th Street) for transit riders.

Such a district would attract fans not necessarily attending the game but wanting a game-day experience. “Our biggest competitor is HDTV,” said Lester Bagley, Vikings vice president, who anticipates a festival atmosphere outside the stadium — including, perhaps, a large screen to show the game.

While many fans are hoping for a retractable roof, there may be better (and more artful) ways to spend construction dollars. Movable roofs on football stadiums tend to be more like sunroofs than convertible tops. A better idea is a giant movable window that opens the stadium to a green plaza, a new transit station, a stadium district and the city beyond.

It is, after all, a lively stadium district that holds the key to success. Repeating the Metrodome mistake is not an option.

————-

Steve Berg, author of “Target Field: The New Home of the Minnesota Twins,” writes about urban design issues.