Category: Permaculture

Travelogue from Northwest Placemaking Tour

5/19/2015

Mark Lakeman did a tour de force of speaking and leading workshops on placemaking in several cities in the Northwest this past week, including Victoria, Vancouver Island, and Orcas Island. Below is a journal of Mark's tour and the events he attended:

Photos and Text by Mark Lakeman - May 18, 2018

Victoria City Council "Critical Mass" Place Making Ride
As our ride snaked through the urban core of Victoria, we visited 8 different sites on May 11 where "intersection repair"-style community placemaking projects are about to get underway...with funding and the active support of the City of Victoria!

Victoria City Council ...Mayor's Bike!
I got to ride Lisa Helps' bike during the Placemaking "Critical Mass" Ride with the city council and community of Victoria!!

Victoria Placemaking Workshop
In Victoria, BC a majority of city council members along with numerous city staff attended this workshop on participatory placemaking. We focused on the 8 locations that we had previously visited during our "Critical Mass" bike tour of the sites. Each site has become a funded "Village Center" project!

Victoria City Council, Staff, Police & Fire Tiny Home Villages for Homeless People
In support of Victoria's new "Tiny Home Villages" initiative to house homeless people, there were two hugely successful events held at city hall on May 11 & 12. These included a public presentation, followed the next day by a workshop that included the mayor, city council members, a great number of city staff and bureau heads, police and fire department heads, as well as lots of active members of the community of Victoria!

Fernwood Telephone Pole Murals
Inspired by the painted intersections in Portland, led by City Repair, the residents of the Fernwood Neighborhood in Victoria, BC have created an annual event that paints, and repaints ordinary telephone poles as a form of community commons and public art! Yes, placemaking, stewardship, and beauty are all over the neighborhood!!

Teaching Placemaking at OUR Ecovillage, Shawnigan Lake, BC
As part of the the largest permaculture design course in the history of Canada (55 students!), the "Intersection Repair" Design Game was played. The students formed three design teams, and within one hour we had analyzed, redesigned, and constructed three intersection repair projects in model form....that are very likely to start popping up all over Canada now!!

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Our Table Farmstand is Open!

11/24/2014

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Farmstand Grand Opening, check!

This amazing structure is one of many aspects to Our Table Cooperative Farm's property and vision...

The 58-acre regenerative farm initiative has been designed using permaculture design strategies, including perennial crops based on “food forest” design concepts, optimum crop rotations, and cooperative ownership and management. As a localization initiative, this project presents an exciting new dimension in the development of our regional food security infrastructure. The grocery offers a curated selection of foods and products, including dairy, produce, meat, health and wellness, dry goods, and prepared meals. A bulk section and a beer, wine, and growler station round out the offerings. The grocery is 85% Oregon sourced and 90% Organic with both vegan and gluten-free selections.

This 2,200 square foot farmstand building comprises a retail grocery storefront, commercial-grade commissary kitchen, and community gathering hall. Sited adjacent to a packing shed and produce storage facility, hoop houses, and acres of Organic crops, it truly embodies the farm-to-shelf story of local, healthy products.

Integration of salvaged heavy timber from site-deconstructed barn became a focus of the building form and detail design. Scissor trusses and an exposed structure help define and give scale to an elegant central atrium. Operable clerestory windows facilitate passive cooling strategies while also creating dramatic shadows in evening sunlight and after dark. The retail grocery space comfortably accommodates shoppers, while the generous central atrium helps the building to feel even more spacious and airy.

Wrap-around porches allow activity to spill outside year-round, surrounded by salvaged timber exterior columns which tie together the rustic material palette. Careful detailing at the column foundations frame each connection, while elevated column bases further protect the salvaged timber from the elements. The geometry creates a clean path for downspouts, and a nice place for resting your boot or to hop-a-squat.

The design seeks to blend traditional and contemporary aesthetics while adding a playful twist to the form and color of the classic farm building. The symmetrical, balanced gable roof at the center receives a hint of asymmetry with adjacent shed roofs attaching along different planes and the therefore the wrap-around porch roofs stepping back similarly.

Many of the other metal-clad service buildings throughout the property follow a simple red and white color scheme. As a special focal point, the farmstand receives a horizontal belly band to make it really stand out and drop to a human scale, accented in a complimentary plum color. Salvaged lumber from the site is incorporated both on the inside and out, contributing to an overall cozy and cohesive feel to the entire project.

We look forward to many more visits to this wonderful space... and hope you may, too!

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PLANT SWAP!

5/27/2014

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Friday May 30th, 2014
3:30-5:30pm
4816 SE 50th Ave (Woodstock Neighborhood)

In conjunction with City Repair's Village Building Convergence, come gather 'round in community and exchange your plants for ones that you do not have yet!

Here's how it works:
You divide your plants that need dividing before hand. Put them in a clearly labeled container & water well before travel. Bring them to our site and gather some plants from what others bring. You can bring bulbs and seeds to trade as well.

Thanks to permaculture expert Marisha Auerbach of Herb'n Wisdom for organizing this community event, as well as the wonderful energy found at Permaculture Rising & Lil' Starts!!

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Travelogue from Northwest Placemaking Tour

Our Table Farmstand is Open!

PLANT SWAP!

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