The city of Victoria wants ideas for landscaping and use of public space on land at either end of the new Johnson Street Bridge.
An open house will be held today from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Delta Ocean Pointe Resort on Songhees Road.
The city is looking for ideas and will have paper, pens, flip charts and display materials on hand.
Written comments and drawings are welcome, said city engineer Peter Sparanese.
The ideas will be collated and then presented at a second open house in July.
CHICO — At a fundraising banquet this spring, the Jesus Center introduced a man recently employed in landscaping.
The man said he’s learning to be “responsible for himself,” explained Jesus Center Director Bill Such. He has a job, and is accountable.
The man said one thing he had to learn was to get up each morning.
Many at the fundraising event giggled. But for the man, getting up each day hadn’t been important in the past.
Now he has a role in society, Such said.
In operation since June, many of the jobs through JobLink have centered around tasks at the Jesus Center — kitchen help, snack bar service, etc.
Also, some workers fill landscaping crews for facilities operated by Behavioral Health.
Such would like to see new businesses added, working within the existing business community.
One idea is to have a coffee house with staff through the program. The Jesus Center would help choose people who appear ready.
Another idea is to use the center’s commercial kitchen to provide meals to people who are home-bound.
More ideas are welcome. Whatever maps out would need to include community involvement, Such said.
“We’re looking into ways in which businesses can be created, small businesses by people who are seeking to get their lives together,” and things that generate skills.
Yet another idea is to run a portable flower cart, maybe in the downtown area, where workers could learn to work with the public.
The key would be to have business
owners, or potential business owners, come forward with ideas and a business plan.
Data entry, janitorial and expansion of the landscaping services all have potential, Such said.
To talk about ideas, Such can be reached at 345-2640. JobLink program manager Tim Stephens can be reached at tim@jesuscenter.org.
Last updated at 20:03, Thursday, 07 June 2012
Workington’s “drab” northern entrance is in line for a major facelift, after leading councillor Barbara Cannon announced ambitions to create a modern gateway into the town.
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Jessica Dockrey, SurfKY News Reporter
HOPKINS COUNTY, KY (6/7/12) – The City of Madisonville has been preparing for their second year of participation in the nation-wide America In Bloom (AIB) competition.
SurfKY News has been keeping the community updated on what the Madisonville AIB committees have been discussing within their committees weekly. Today, June the 7th at 10 a.m., Madisonville Mayor David Jackson, the AIB steering committee, and committee chairs, gathered at City Hall to discuss what each committee has in the works, and to direct focus on what the city hopes to achieve this year overall.
The Madisonville AIB Steering Committee members include Mayor David Jackson, Mike Franklin, Shane Browning, Rick Welch, Andy Rideout, Sue Jones, and Leslie Curneal.
Curneal and Browning opened the meeting up to the committee chairs to hear from each of them individually. Each of the AIB committees and/or categories and a description, as well as their respective chairs, is as follows:
Overall Impression (Tricia Noel): Overall cleanliness, including a lack of litter and graffiti, as well as maintenance of public open spaces (medians, boulevard strips, streets, sidewalks, walking and biking trails, curbs, ditches, road shoulders, receptacles, etc.).
Floral Display (Jenny Gibson): Quality, color, arrangement, and maintenance of visible floral arrangements.
Urban Forestry (Chris Oeschlager): Distribution, variety, policies, preservation and maintenance of trees.
Landscaped Areas (Lisa Moberly): Overall design and maintenance of plants and “hardscape” elements such as public art, monuments, etcetera.
Heritage Preservation (Bob Adkins): Preservation and restoration of properties, as well as cultural heritage promotion.
Environmental Efforts (Robert Janes): Sustainability practices—the best practices for reducing, reusing, and recycling.
Tricia Noel, chair of the Overall Impression Committee and Hopkins County Tourism Commission Executive Director, started things off. Noel identified projects her committee had been working on. Among those were the monthly Madisonville Hopkins County Chamber of Commerce sponsored Golden Broom Award, the taking down of old Christmas lights downtown, and the Exit 42 facelift.
As previously reported, the city will be utilizing inmate labor to remove overgrown brush, and to mow alongside the Pennyrile Parkway near Exit 42. Noel projects that the project, which will be starting sometime next week, will take around two weeks to complete.
“We feel real good about that project,” stated Noel. “That exit is our front door to visitors.”
Jenny Gibson, chair of the Floral Display Committee, announced that her committee had successfully distributed 59 large flower pots to different businesses downtown to be displayed. The committee is already discussing what colors they want to promote for next years contest so that they will not run short on local flower supplies. This year the theme “Red, White, and Bloom”, caused purple petunias to become scarce, as local greenhouses weren’t prepared for the numbers of flowers that would be needed. The committee has plans to work next year with FFA at North Hopkins High School, using their new greenhouse, to help provide what will be needed for next year’s contest.
Gibson has proposed a project to do some low maintenance landscaping around the sculpture park on Center Street via the Lowe’s Hero’s Program, which has the potential to donate up to $1,500 towards the project if it qualifies. Gibson also reported on the Oak Street in Bloom neighborhood project she has been spearheading. The project received around 20% participation this year, and Gibson projects that next year participation levels will rise as the project expands. She plans to get a much earlier start on things that way more neighborhoods will be able to get involved, and perhaps the different neighborhoods might host cookouts on planting days to generate more interest and participation. Gibson also pitched her long-term project idea, which has received a lot of local support; to turn the “grass buffers” around town alongside the city roads into built-in flower beds for highly invasive flowers, such as evening primrose, to beautify the city.
“The hope would be if we could do some test pots, and it could work, that not only could we beautify our city throughout the season, but we could reduce the matenience burden on the city by not having to mow these areas and maintain them,” explains Gibson.
Christine Oeschlager, co-chair of the Urban Forestry Committee and a Forester with the Kentucky Division of Forestry, presented information as to what her committee has been working on over the last couple of weeks.
The Urban Forestry Committee has undertaken a mulching project around town, as many trees go improperly mulched. They have also been taking unnecessary stakes and tags off of local trees.
“It was a lot of hard work,” says Oeschlager, “I think the visual improvement was immediate.”
The Urban Forestry Committee has plans to educate the public and get as much information out into the community as possible. They will be handing out brochures tomorrow at Friday Night Live with information pertaining to general tree and plant care. The committee has plans to get certain areas in the community certified as National Wildlife Habitat Areas. The Madisonville City Park has already applied, and the Urban Forestry Committee is working with other various entities around the community to explore the same possibility. The committee still plans to hang tree watering bags on young trees around town.
Lisa Moberly, chair of the Landscaped Areas Committee, also expressed her committee’s wishes to dress up Exit 42. The committee has been entertaining different ideas as to what might be a good, large, visual piece, that expresses the heritage of Madisonville. Moberly also discussed her hopes that the city might vote on an official city tree and plant that citizens could use to honor and beautify the city.
“The one tree that keeps coming up is the redbud,” says Moberly. “There are many different varieties of redbuds people could plant. There is nothing prettier than a redbud in winter, the beautiful color of the bark. Of course, in spring time, they are simply gorgeous.”
Bob Adkins, chair of the Heritage Preservation Committee, pointed out ideas his committee has proposed. There are proper nameplates needed in the Ruby Laffoon Cabin located beside the Historical Society of Hopkins County. The entire Historical Society needs upgrades. They require proper labels within their filing systems, more professional displays, and updated brochures for their historical walking/driving tours. Adkins also suggested that the Ruby Laffoon marker be refurbished and moved to the actual location of the Ruby Laffoon cabin.
“One thing, and I’ve talked to Judge Executive Carroll about it, the Ruby Laffoon historical highway marker on the lawn there at the old courthouse doesn’t need to be there,” says Adkins. “I think it needs to be in front of the Ruby Laffoon cabin, out on the lawn. It makes more sense to me. So far, everyone I have talked to seems to agree with that.”
Robert Janes, co-chair of the Environmental Efforts Committee and Director of Sanitation for the City of Madisonville, pointed out the focus of his committee. The city will be participating in a voluntary single-stream curbside recycling program which will be kicking off on October the 1st. Sign-ups for the recycling program will take place in July. Janes will be handing out education brochures at Friday Night Live, and 4th Fest to spread some recycling knowledge around town and to inform the public about the new curbside recycling program. There are also plans to transform the inside and outside of the recycling center which is in great need of a makeover. The Environmental Efforts Committee also plans to have a community-wide vote regarding a new recycling mascot they would like to utilize to promote recycling education at local schools.
“The best way to get curbside recycling participation is by educating the kids,” says Janes.
Collectively, the group discussed all ideas brought to the table, and then reviewed the timeline of the itinerary for the AIB judges’ who will arrive July 11th. Each committee chair will make a presentation to the judges, and the judges will be given a full tour of Madisonville. Each committee chair will present to the judges the projects they have been working on, what has been done, what is currently taking place, and what the future plans are for that committee. Committee chairs will recognize any weaknesses the city has, and in turn, ask the judges about different ways they might go about fixing those trouble spots.
July 12th, there will be a closing reception held for the judges and everyone involved in the AIB project.
“I just want to thank everybody for all their hard work,” says Mayor Jackson. “I’m already seeing the tangible results. This goes beyond getting judged. This is a definite improvement to our whole community and I really appreciate all your dedication and hard work, and also your committees, please pass my appreciation onto them as well.”
If you would like to support the AIB project in some way, please contact either Leslie Curneal at (270) 824-2102 or Shane Browning at (270) 245-2250 for more information. Business sponsorships are welcome as well.
You can also keep up with the project as it progresses by checking out Madisonville’s official America in Bloom Facebook page by clicking here. You can also visit the City of Madisonville’s online site here.
To learn more about American in Bloom, including the program’s history and award categories, please visit their official website here.
To read previous articles regarding Madisonville’s participation in the AIB project click the titles below.
—Put Your Words to Work, Shape Madisonville’s Future Today
—What Does Your Front Door Say
—Color – Impacting Madisonville
—Tree Hugging Isn’t Just for Hippies
—New Recycling Program to Cost City $364K
—Fresh Focus Bringing Visual Beauty to Madisonville
—Heritage Preservation – Community Involvement Welcome
Jessica Dockrey
SurfKY News
Copyright © 2012 SurfKY News Group, Inc. all rights reserved. SurfKY.com is an eNewspaper providing local news FREE to Kentucky 24/7. Read Statewide Kentucky News, Sports, Obituaries and more for Kentucky covering: Calloway, Christian, Daviess, Henderson, Hopkins, McCracken, Muhlenberg, Warren, and Webster Counties as well as the Kentucky Lakes Area.
Spring and summer are optimal seasons to take on new landscaping projects at home. Photo: LandscapingNetwork.com
Landscaping provides an ideal setting for homeowners to express creativity by creating custom gardens, outdoor retreats and entertainment areas.
Calimesa, CA (PRWEB) June 07, 2012
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5:40pm Wednesday 6th June 2012 in News
REDDITCH Council has no intention of relocating the town’s central war memorial, fountain or bandstand, the leader of the authority has confirmed.
Councillor Bill Hartnett has responded to make his position clear after one of the options being explored amongst ideas for the future development of the town centre gathered an unexpected amount
of local traction.
While there were no actual plans in place to relocate the town centre’s war memorial, fountain or bandstand for town centre development purposes, the idea to do so had been consulted upon as part
of general town centre landscaping plans, which attracted approximately 115 responses.
Among the responses, public opposition to some ideas for the war memorial, fountain or bandstand was made clear and petitions were submitted to the council as well as other feedback.
Coun Hartnett said: “Moving the war memorial, fountain or bandstand in the development of that area was never a firm plan and I can confirm that the council has no plans to pursue it further. It’s
clear that there is no appetite for it, as responses from the community have shown.
“The final decision will of course be made by councillors through the formal committee process in due course, and the views that residents have submitted to us will be included in this debate. But
to be clear, we have no intention of progressing these particular ideas.”
Originally imagined to complement the regeneration of St Stephens Church and its surrounding area by a partnership of the church and Redditch Council, ideas that have been consulted on include
using land to the south of the church as an events or plaza space and land to the north of the church as a more tranquil church garden area. This would include relocating the war memorial and
bandstand.
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Here are some thoughts I’ve had in the wake of Sunday’s critique:
–Would the two office towers be better if they were more fluid than faceted. I suppose that’s not possible given the office building brief, but a lobed tower (like Lake Point Tower) might read better from a variety of angles. The prow of the south tower looks good from the south looking north but its faceted elevation is awfully bulky when seen from east to west, especially when combined with the east tower.
–Would this trio of towers be better off with related, but different designs, like Kohn Pedersen Fox’s 333 West Wacker and its two bookends across the river? Perhaps that would help the new Wolf Point development to fit more seamlessly into the parade of skyscrapers on the river’s north bank.
–Is there a better site plan for Wolf Point than the one that Pelli has proposed? I’ve heard complaints from readers, echoing views expressed by last week’s public hearing, that the prow of the south tower would cramp the public space along the riverfront. In short, is there a way to give this commercial development a more civic character befitting its extraordinary site?
Last week the council handed over materials for projects selected under the programme to a number of beneficiaries. Already the council, through the Department of Social Services, has funded 17 business ideas from the community of Selebi Phikwe under APP at well over P100,000.
APP beneficiary, Botho Mamadi who is in the business of landscaping and flower arrangement, has the council to thank for every piece of equipment the business needs. Mamadi told The Monitor that she has a strategy to survive the competition posed by major landscaping companies in the town. She explained that she is currently brushing up her skills through a short course with the Department of Parks.
“My business is based in Botshabelo North. I do flower arrangements, tree spraying, tree trimming, lawn ploughing, and I intend to start a plant nursery,” gushed Mamadi. Another beneficiary, Gorata Modikwa, operates a beauty parlour at Phase Two. She offers a body spa, manicure, pedicure, waxing and beauty products. The council also bought her all the equipment she needed to kickstart the business.
“I have studied beauty therapy but all along I have been struggling to set up my business due to financial constraints,” she said. She admitted that her biggest assignment would be to market her new business. SPTC acting chief community development officer, Segopotso Dikai said in an interview last week that when they launched the programme last November, her department mobilised the community to own it, and the response was positive with 34 proposals received. To date, they have funded 17 of the proposals. The other 17 business ideas will be funded once funds are available, Dikai noted. She explained that the aim of the APP is to eradicate poverty and promote economic empowerment.
“People who have been assisted under this project have started operating. Those who did not have skills have been offered training. We want people to do something they enjoy. We do not impose projects on people,” said Dikai.
She observed that some of the challenges that the beneficiaries face include lack of space. Dikai further revealed that they intend to compile a business catalogue of all the businesses that they have assisted to market them to different organisations in Selebi Phikwe.
At a time when many landscape construction contractors abruptly shifted their focus to landscape maintenance, Scott Parker doubled down on his bread and butter: residential design/build. He’s made it work, thanks to some standards and systems put in place long before the construction and housing markets collapsed.
Parker grew up in a 65-year-old family business. Parker Gardens, a 14-acre greenhouse and garden center, was started by his grandfather in 1948. Parker’s father runs that company today. After hearing many stories about contracting “nightmares” from customers, family and friends, Parker saw an opportunity to start a business of his own. He did just that in 2002 when he founded Parker Homescape in Basking Ridge, NJ.
“I saw a niche in focusing on extraordinary customer service combined with a fantastic product,” Parker says. Sounds simple—but it’s easier said than done for many contractors. Just ask “Lisa”, a Warren, NJ, homeowner who nominated Parker Homescape for the Pros in Excellence Award in 2007. She called Parker after another contractor “installed a horrible landscape and never returned a phone call after the job was complete.” Parker Homescape did just the opposite, which is why the company has been able to build a backlog of design/build work—even in today’s economy.
In just 10 years, Parker Homescape has evolved from a small design/build firm that advertised heavily to attract new business to a near $2 million company with a backlog of work garnered strictly through word of mouth. Parker says the transformation has been made possible because his team always “goes the extra mile” to please clients and generate buzz.
“Some of the small things that have significant meaning are returning phone calls the same day, replacing plants that have perished in a timely fashion, and other complementary services,” Parker relates. For instance, if a client calls five years later with a concern about a plant or an issue with an insect, Parker Homescape will make a visit to the property—free of charge.
Parker views this type of customer service as a marketing investment, as opposed to a profit drain. It has obviously paid off. Just to make sure, Parker sends clients a questionnaire at the end of every season so they can provide feedback on professionalism, workmanship and presentation. “We welcome feedback on any and all areas,” Parker says.
Continuous improvement is something Parker and his staff take very seriously. Each member of the management team has earned a bachelor’s degree. But the learning doesn’t stop there. “We offer continuing education through Rutgers University,” Parker points out, adding that it’s limited to landscaping- and horticulture-related courses, as opposed to business, for example. “We’re looking to further our employees’ product and construction knowledge.”
Most recently, Parker and his lead designer, Jon Mercer, attained ICPI (Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute) certification. Now they’re setting their sights on the current evolution of outdoor lighting. “We’re really interested in LED lighting as it is starting to replace low-voltage lighting as the wave of the future,” Parker says.
Pavers are also best path substance and can be employed, as to stay away from having to edge the landscaped location with edging substance.
Typically, a plant or shrub can be safely moved to be incorporated into the style. Significant trees might take more preparing. Chatting with a regional nursery about relocating larger planted trees, like fruit trees, is suggested. Arranging the transfer for existing plants must be carried out when they are in their dormant state to steer clear of any prospective re-rooting issues. The style and design stage should also include a nearby h2o resource for landscape watering, or a drinking water irrigation style really should be extra. It is recommended that all waterlines, underground cable lines, electric line, phone lines and fuel lines be nicely marked beforehand. Calling the regional utility and electrical power business is a very good idea prior to actually digging up a yard.
As soon as the backyard landscaping types are drawn and finished, vegetation, trees, h2o structures and pavers or stepping stones need to be purchased. Vegetation, trees and shrubbery should be picked for their beauty as properly as their hardiness. Make confident the vegetation that are acquired for the landscaping project are properly zoned for the region. A local nursery or landscaping magazine will have this information. Native vegetation ought to be utilized, not only for the present wildlife species, but due to the fact invasive species have a tendency to turn out to be aggressive and rapidly get over the style and design, typically killing off native species.
H2o fountains and backyard water ponds lend inventive and architectural benefit to yard landscaping styles. Plants that are known water species or tolerate wet soil problems should be easy to locate and establish in and around these h2o features. If fish are added to the water pond, a excellent investment would be a pond mesh covering to preserve birds from fishing in the pond. Further functions to add about ponds and fountains are stunning riverbed rocks and small landscaping boulders. Lights that light these attributes up at night can add even far more fascination to the landscape. Photo voltaic mild kits are the most common and most price-powerful to use.
There are numerous low cost landscaping ideas that will nonetheless create wonderful front and backyard designs. Now when I see “cheap”, that’s not what I truly indicate. I ought to have mentioned low-cost. There is not any element of the landscape exactly where you can’t minimize the charges creatively.
Patios and Walkways – Some Low cost Landscaping Suggestions
If you have looked at the a lot more high-priced hardscape components this sort of as brick, bluestone and other natural stone, you are considering the far more pricey paving stones. Sure, they can be extremely stunning, but that’s not to say you can’t still have a stunning patio or walkway style and design. Concrete pavers are much less expensive than the over options. Even significantly less expensive than pavers is concrete. Take into account including coloration to the concrete blend for some further curiosity.
Retaining Partitions
Landscape retaining partitions can get extremely pricey. Charges are approximated by the sq. foot of 1 side, but 6 inches is extra on in height for the portion of the wall that is built beneath the ground. backyard designs
Posted in the Family Home category.
