VODA Landscape + Planning

Here at VODA we’re passionate about the power of community gardens. A community garden is not only a place to grow healthy, nutritious food, but also a place where people learn about the earth’s systems and cycles, where a deeper understanding of our connection to the earth can be instilled, and also a place where community members can meet and talk and develop stronger community connections.   We’ve been working with a great group of parents, teachers, and volunteers at Jackson Elementary in the Fairpark neighborhood of Salt Lake City to develop a new school garden that will also be used by the community at large.

The garden is a small space, carved out of the corner of the playfield adjacent to the school, but this small space will pack a punch–space for education for all grades at the school, space for composting and garden activities, raised beds for community members to use, and gathering space for people to relax and enjoy the small urban oasis.

VODA’s been working with a great new client for the last couple months in San Marcos, California.  The TERI organization serves the needs of people with autism, with a range of educational and vocational training opportunities.  We’ve been working with TERI to assist in planning a new 20-acre campus in San Marcos, incorporating landscapes of many kinds, including a major agricultural production element.

A recent article discussed one family’s efforts to help raise funds for the construction of this innovative campus:

Rancho Santa Fe resident spearheading fundraising effort for unique campus devoted to serving children and adults with special needs

By Diane Y. Welch
Contributor

Rancho Santa Fe’s Dawn Hummel is proving her metal as chair of the capital campaign to raise funds for an innovative San Marcos university-style campus.
The unique 20-acre campus is named the Charles R. Cono Campus for Life Quality. The campus was named for the lead benefactor who purchased the land for the Training, Education and Research Institute (TERI), a longstanding nonprofit organization that serves the needs of children and adults with developmental and learning disabilities.

Hummel has taken on the challenge of heading up a committee to raise $20 million to complete the campus by 2014, with a goal to raise $5 million this year alone.

The first phase of the campus was recently completed and a gala was held to celebrate the ribbon cutting of its first building, the Harriet E. Pfleger Therapeutic Equestrian Center. The Harriet E. Pfleger Foundation donated $1 million to build the horse barn which houses six horses and will serve 150 riders.

The gala event, Cuvee delle Vite, chaired by Hummel, is TERI’s largest annual fundraiser to date. It was kicked off with a $100,000 donation from Grant General Contractors, partners for construction of the new campus. In addition, sales of fine art created by clients of TERI and donations by family members and friends added more than $230,000 to the building fund.

Hummel said that every fiber of her body and spirit is committed to this fundraising mission. She brings to this commitment a prior history as a determined trailblazer and advocate for those with autism and learning disabilities.

She was a single mother living in Los Angeles when her son, Jonny, then 2 1/2, was diagnosed with autism. That was almost 20 years ago, when there weren’t many services and programs for children with autism, said Hummel. “It was left to the mothers who fought day and night to find out about autism, to fight for the services that we needed to get.”

When Hummel moved to New York in 1992 she was frustrated that there was no school for Jonny close by. Through fundraising, she initially started a pre-school for special needs newborns through 5 year olds, and then founded the Child Development Center of the Hamptons, a learning center for K-7 special needs students that by 2001 became an inclusive environment that integrated regular students.

Charles R. Cono Campus for Life Quality

In 2004 the center was housed in a permanent school structure that was named The Zimmerman Hummel Building of Humanity in honor of Hummel whose “Open to All” philosophy was controversial at the time but now is fully recognized.

Ironically, her son never benefited from these schools. “Fighting the education department to get approval for them always took two years, and he was always two years ahead of me,” Hummel explained.

The family moved to Rancho Santa Fe in 2005 when Hummel learned of TERI’s Oceanside-based Learning Academy that serves students up to age 22. “People forget that children with autism become adults with autism, so I started looking all over the country for a school for Jonny with a program that he could be in for his lifetime,” Hummel explained.

Founded in 1980 by Cheryl Kilmer, TERI is recognized as a model program in the state of California for the quality of services it provides to its clients. For Hummel’s family, it has brought immeasurable joy. “It is so wonderful to see Jonny enjoying life, and being so individual, so independent. I notice how happy he is, I see it in his eyes, I see it in his heart,” said Hummel. “And now Jonny is having the opportunity to go to college which is something that I am very proud of and that I want to be a part of.”

Hummel is grateful to the Rancho Santa Fe community for its generous financial support. Funds for TERI have been granted by the Rancho Santa Fe Women’s Fund, the Rancho Santa Fe Foundation, Linda Pfleger Edwards and the Harriet E. Pfleger Foundation, and, most recently, by Verna Harrah, whose support will fund the Culinary Institute, and Recreation Center on the campus. Ultimately, the campus will include life quality planning and coaching, fitness and aquatics, arts, culinary, IT, medical, agriculture, research, green/sustainability and academic curriculums for preschool through 12th grades and adult education/vocational training.

“For my son this will be like Princeton, or Stanford, or Yale,” said Hummel. “This is the first [type of campus of its kind] on the face of this earth, and we are proud to be a part of it.”

On Sunday, August 14, the San Diego Polo Fields will have a day to recognize TERI, with the TERI riders doing a demonstration, and TERI artists exhibiting their work which will be for sale. To learn more about TERI or to find out how to leave a lasting mark on the campus through its brick campaign, visit www.teriinc.org or text or email teri@mogiv.com.

Do you know where your breakfast this morning came from?  Do you know where the dinner you’ll eat tonight will come from? Did you know that your food travels on average 1200 miles in order to get to your plate? The US Federal Farm Bill is coming up for renewal in 2012, and its policy’s will determine for the next five years what kinds of foods Americans eat, and how the agricultural lands of our country are managed.

Last week the Mayor’s Food Policy Task Force hosted a panel discussion on how the Farm Bill will impact Salt Lake City, and Utah in general.  Issues of obesity, food access and security, and land preservation were all discussed.  Two of VODA’s current projects were discussed during the forum, including Mayor Beckers discussion of the Sugar House Community Garden,and JT Martin’s discussion of Frog Bench Farms, an urban farm project on Salt Lake City’s east bench.  Additionally, the Food Policy Task Force is  working with us to create the Salt Lake City Community Food Assessment.

The panel included:

• Utahns Against Hunger Executive Director Gina Cornia
• Utah State University Professor of Sociology Dr. Douglas Jackson-Smith
• Public Health Nutritionist Patrice Isabella of the Utah Department of Health
• Salt Lake City Councilman J.T. Martin

The forum was broadcast on KCPW radio. Follow the link below to listen to the forum in its entirety.

You can read more about the forum at the KCPW webpage here.

Click here to listen to podcast of the Farm Bill Forum.

Many people easily associate sustainability with energy efficiency, recycling, biking, public transportation, solar power, hybrid vehicles, and even shopping at local businesses, but few readily associate sustainability with food.  How and what we eat as a community has a major impact on long-term sustainability.  “Eating locally” is more than just a pleasant aphorism for the wealthier among us, it is an absolutely essential goal for any community wishing to encourage a healthier population, create local jobs, and support local business.

One of the largest ecological detriments of the industrialization of food in the last 50-years is the cost of transporting food hundreds of miles from where it is produced to where it is consumed.  Government subsidy of food production, as well as major petroleum subsidies have made it feasible to transport food economically from places as far away as China and Chile to North America for American consumers.  Events of the last few years have exposed the inherent un-sustainability of this kind of food system, and the interest in local food in America has skyrocketed.  The numbers of farmers markets and community gardens continue to increase from year to year, and more and more of the population is seeking ways to reduce their dependence on industrialized food and its deep dependence on subsidized fossil fuels.

This year VODA has been involved in two pro-bono projects supporting new community gardens in the Salt Lake City area. The first is the Artspace Garden located at the Rubber Company building in west Downtown Salt Lake.  Last spring, the site for the garden looked like this:

This was basically dead space behind the residential building. With great sun exposure, and existing fencing, the Artspace community saw this as an ideal spot for a small community garden for its tenants. After a few weeks of planning and organizing, the group had constructed deep garden beds and support trellises for the community garden:

Today we’re nearing the end of the growing season here in Salt Lake, but the community garden has grown significantly, and brought together a group of people around the idea of local food production:

Another project VODA’s been working on is the Sugar House Community Garden, built on top of neglected tennis courts adjacent to the Sugar House business district in the south east corner of Salt Lake City. Here’s where we started in the spring:

After several weeks of planning and fundraising, we had beds constructed for lease by  community members:

After a long summer of hard work and care from Sugar House gardeners, we’ve got a beautiful, productive garden:

Its been a productive year for many community gardens in Utah, and the Sugar House Community Garden has enjoyed support from a wide range of community members, from elected leaders down to individual community members donating time and labor into ensuring the long-term existence of the garden.

Despite the weather turning wet and cold, things are still progressing on an exciting project here in Salt Lake City that VODA’s been working on for more than a year.   Located in the foothills of Salt Lake, this project is spearheaded by a couple of visionaries working to develop a new residence and urban farm. Construction is progressing on the residence, and the space is beginning to take shape!

We don’t have AFTER shots yet, but the project is quickly progressing to match the model we developed to assist the design team. Special shout-out to Kathleen Hill of Hill and Company for her expertise in getting this project built!

VODA presented the latest planning issues related to urban agriculture today to the membership of the Utah Chapter of the American Planning Association on Monday, August 8, 2011 along with staff planners from CRSA, Kelly Gillman and Susie Petheram. Below is additional information from the presentation for those interested in how agriculture must play a key role in our urban areas in the future.

VODA Urban Agriculture Handout

Local food production is a key consideration for communities seeking to develop a more sustainable future. Locally grown food reduces the amount of food that must be shipped to your community, thereby decoupling the cost of food from volatile fuel prices. It also encourages less ecologically destructive farming practices, promotes more healthy diets, and can develop economic systems that benefit local communities. Many urban areas in the US are crafting policy that encourages urban agriculture. This session will discuss resources available for those interested in engaging in urban agriculture, and identify policy barriers to local food production.

Salt Lake County Urban Agriculture Initiative:                                http://urbanfarming.slco.org
Salt Lake City:                                                                                               http://www.slcgov.com/slcgreen/food/
AGRICULTURAL URBANISM,                                                                    http://agriculturalurbanism.com

Andres Duany & DPZ’s Agricultural Urbanism:                                                               www.lindroth.cc/pdf/QuickReadAgf.pdf

VODA is excited to announce that we’ve been selected to develop a community food assessment for Salt Lake City. We are teaming with Robin Carbaugh, of Carbaugh Associates, and Scott Murray, of Murray Farms to analyze the food systems of Salt Lake City, including all producers, processors, distributors, and consumers of food within a 200 mile radius of the city.

The food we eat, where it comes from and how it is produced has a large impact on our community and our quality of life. Assessing the current situation of Salt Lake City’s food system is a vital first step in establishing the methods necessary to make the system sustainable. This analysis process will help ensure the vitality of the food systems in Salt Lake City, the health and well-being of its residents and the ability for future generations to continue with sustainable practices and living.

The video below features Scott Murray, an organic farmer and agricultural consultant teaming with us on the Salt Lake City Community Food Assessment, talking about the farm he helped develop for San Pasqual Academy, in San Diego County.

On May 11, 2011 VODA took part in the much anticipated groundbreaking for Frog Bench Farms, a new urban farm project on the east bench of the Salt Lake Valley.  Already a year in planning, this project will include agricultural production facilities in the heart of Salt Lake City.  With food production increasingly at the heart of many community’s discussions about sustainability and food security, VODA is thrilled to be a part of such a trail-blazing project.  The ground breaking was hosted by Joe and Paula Sargetakis, owners and operators of Frog Bench Farms, and was attended by friends, family, community members, and the project & construction team.  Look forward to great things to come from Frog Bench Farms!

VODA worked with the Artspace organization and Wasatch Community Gardens to help craft a new community garden in downtown Salt Lake City. VODA applauds any effort to improve the neighborhood, and to build a stronger sense of community in our city.  As landscape architects, we support programs that will educate the wider population of the city on issues of land stewardship, environmental sustainability, food security, and quality public spaces. This project was a prototype for future community gardens to be sponsored at Artspace’s other properties in the downtown area. VODA helped to facilitate public meetings, design, and cost estimation.

VODA’s been working recently with a grassroots group of citizens determined to turn a community eyesore into a community asset.  With a highly visible corner of Sugar House occupied by long-unused tennis courts, this group is planning to create the Sugar House Community Garden on the space once occupied by the Fairmont Park Tennis Courts.

Read more about this project »