Summer Updates from Riley Park!

This summer has been a busy one in the Riley Park Community Garden! Being our inaugural season, there have been many moving parts in developing this project and creating the space. Some highlights from the past couple of months:

·      Our official opening day on June 24th that brought many community members of all backgrounds growing together

 

·      The tribute to Ed Shum: a lifelong gardener and friend of the garden

 

·      Enjoying our open-door work parties in the sunshine alongside the Riley Park Farmer’s Market (ice coffee and BC berries within arm’s reach is always a plus!)

·      Building accessible garden beds to ensure that every body is able to work in the garden

·      The Four Corners ceremony led by First Nations Elder Amy and creating a medicine wheel plant circle

 

·      Watching all our garden member groups grow edible plants, some of which will be donated to people in need

·      Workshops by the Vancouver Meet-Up Group and the New Gardeners Group, teaching everything from planning a food garden, to companion planting, to growing edible flowers!

 

·      The “Plein Air” art event at the garden, encouraging community members to unleash their creativity while enjoying the outdoors

·      Picnics in the Park: bringing Chinese-speaking senior residents from Little Mountain Court for a picnic and chats in the garden

 

·      The Latino Watering Night Cookout, which featured a veggie BBQ with donated produce from the Riley Park Farmer’s Market and live music!

·      Our Syrian Newcomer Potluck lunch which gathered Syrian families involved with the garden and their friends, as well as other community members who contributed dishes from several cultures

 

Stay tuned for further updates via our Facebook page and/or signing up for the newsletter on this website! 

Thank You, Applicants. We will be in touch.

As our Garden Coordinator Hannah wraps up her 6-month contract and heads back to UBC Farm full-time, the garden is taking shape and our programming is being planned for the summer; so we are looking to find a new addition to our team!

We are looking to hire a Riley Park Community Outreach Coordinator on contract from June to October 2017 to oversee the marketing, community engagement and outreach for our activities in Riley Park. This includes the Riley Park Community Garden, the Fieldhouse education plan, community events and celebrations. This position will take on a leadership role in outreach: contacting and engaging groups and residents to work in the garden and for them to offer workshops and activities in the fieldhouse. The Coordinator is the main contact person for our activities in Riley Park.

For more information, including how to apply, please see the contract description here or click the image below.

Community donation from Home Depot!

We want to extend our gratitude to Home Depot on Cambie for their generous support of the garden! Their donations enabled us to secure important tools (shovels, rakes, wheelbarrows and more) necessary to build the Riley Park Community Garden. Thank you to George Paterson-Taylor, Assistant Store Manager, and the whole Home Depot team for all their support!

Garden newsletter and updates: February 23 2017

Get your hands dirty: upcoming work parties

After a big turnout at our first ever work party last weekend, we're back with weekly opportunities to get your hands dirty in the garden. If you belong to an organization, community group, or class that would like to organize a work party please contact us at info@rileyparkgarden.org, we'd love to host you for a visit! Or you can join us for our weekly public workparties.

  • Who: All work parties are open to the public and all ages, skill levels, and abilities are welcome. Bring friends and family!
  • What to bring: Come dressed for the weather to stay warm and dry; conditions in the garden are currently muddy and wet. If you have your own gardening gloves or tools (especially shovels and rakes) please bring them, but we will have some on hand.
  • Where: At Riley Park. We will meet at the garden site on the southeast corner of E 30th Avenue and Ontario Street.
  • How: Please RSVP for any work parties you hope to attend so we can reach you in case inclement weather or site conditions force us to reschedule.

Sunday February 26th, 12:00-2:00PM: Garden Ground Preparation
Join us as we prepare the ground in the Riley Park Community Garden! RSVP here or to info@rileyparkgarden.org.

Sunday March 5th, 12:00-2:00PM: Soil Preparation
Come help out as we build up the garden's top soil and shape out the growing areas of the Riley Park Community Garden! We will be moving soil that has been delivered into the growing areas of the garden to form the beds. RSVP here or to info@rileyparkgarden.org.

More work party dates will be added very soon. To see an updated list of garden events at any time, visit our Garden Calendar!

Share your voice: upcoming meetings

Our meetings are open to the public and all are welcome! Please review past meeting minutes here to ensure you are up to speed on our discussions. If you have any items you wish to add any upcoming meeting agendas, or if you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to us at info@rileyparkgarden.org.

  • Green Team Meeting: Thursday March 2nd, 7:00-9:00PM at Hillcrest Centre room 320. The Green Team meets specifically to talk about the garden's design, planning, building and maintenance. The agenda for this meeting can be viewed here.
  • General Garden Committee Meeting: Thursday March 9th, 7:00-9:00PM at Hillcrest Centre room 320. Hear updates about the garden, shed project, fieldhouse, and more! Participate in discussions about the garden. See the agenda for this meeting here.
  • Green Team Meeting: Thursday April 6th, 7:00-9:00PM at Hillcrest Centre room 320. The Green Team meets specifically to talk about the garden's design, planning, building and maintenance. The agenda for this meeting will be circulated in mid-March.

Riley Park Fieldhouse Opening March 2nd

As we prepare to take over part of the Riley Park Fieldhouse for the community garden, workshops, education, skill development and art programming, we are excited to share this opening event with our neighbours that we share the fieldhouse with, Merakos Collective. Our initiatives are part of the City of Vancouver's Fieldhouse Activation Program.

Come out to the fieldhouse opening party on Thursday March 2nd, 5:00-9:00PM to see the designs for our Serviceable Shed project created at our recent charette, gather ideas on the education and workshops you want to see, and learn about the garden's shared beds and ways to get involved! The fieldhouse is located at 92 E 32nd Avenue, at the Eastern end of Riley Park.

Come by for the opening party and then head across the street to Hillcrest Centre at 7PM to join for our Green Team meeting!

 Saturday February 11
The Serviceable Shed (in the Community Garden)
Join us to Design & Brainstorm on Sourcing repurposed, recycled, eco-friendly materials. 

1:00-4:00PM at Hillcrest Community Centre Room 328
RSVP:  varouj
The Shed will represent the cultural mosaic in our community, art, a solar panel, portable cooking,  stained glass, cob, sun path and trellis.

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Garden Work Parties Scheduled!

February 19 - 12:00 Noon - 2:00 PM - Tamara
Volunteers to help prepare the ground for soil delivery.
Bring garden gloves, pick axes, ensure layout is clear, signage is up.

February 24 - Open time

February 26 - 12:00 Noon - 2:00 PM
Volunteers to help spread soil to garden beds
Bring Garden Gloves, shovels, wheelbarrows if you have, but tools are supplied.

March 5 - 12:00 Noon - 2:00 PM - Tamara
Volunteers to help spread soil to garden beds
Bring Garden Gloves, shovels, wheelbarrows if you have, but tools are supplied

Saturday June 24th - Opening Day of Riley Park and the New Farmers Market in the Park. Join our celebration and garden activities. 

Reminder: Meeting January 19, 6:30PM at Hillcrest Room 320 and Other Updates

This is a reminder that our upcoming Riley Park Garden Committee meeting is this Thursday January 19th, 6:30PM at Hillcrest Centre room 320. All are welcome to join! If this is your first meeting, we invite you to review the minutes from our past meetings here first to get up to speed. The meeting agenda is included in that list as well.

Check out our latest newsletter here for updates on this meeting, the Sustainable Shed Project, a group visit to the Surrey Sharing Garden, and partnerships that benefit our community!

Next Meeting and Update from November 22 2016 Meeting

Out next general meeting is coming up on Thursday January 19th at 6:30PM. Stay tuned for a location!

On November 22nd 2016 we held an open meeting at Hillcrest Centre to discuss the progress and next steps for the garden. Our agenda focused mainly on discussing the updated design, planting, a timeline for activities over the next six months, membership, and budgeting. Community members met the newly-hired Garden Coordinator who is on a six-month contract to support the garden building.

Materials from the meeting (minutes and a work plan for the next six months) are below; click the thumbnail to read the documents in full!

Fieldhouse First Post

SHED Design Session.  Join us on Saturday, February 11.  (Design and Brainstorming on Sourcing Materials)
1:00-4:00PM at Hillcrest Community Centre Room 328
RSVP:  varouj
Come prepared to share ideas on where we will source repurposed, recycled and eco-friendly materials.  The Shed will showcase Zero Waste and Greenest City Action Strategies. It includes a medicine wheel, art, solar and wind panels, portable cooking,  stained glass, cob construction, sun path, trellis, alignment NSEW directions.

(SEPTEMBER 8) Committee Meeting

Discussion included: Including natural plants, bees like thistles. Len has a construction background so can work on the CAD drawing and building. Becky Till is our current VPB Garden liaison. shrubs and some things to get on site before the frost. put in space holders. need action plans and timeline
identify the priority pieces. Fall is the time to plant trees.

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HIRING Garden Coordinator

The Riley Park Garden Coordinator is responsible for the development and coordination of Phase 1 of the Little Community Garden (30th and Ontario). The Coordinator will ensure the construction and planting of the garden based on the approved garden design in collaboration with and reporting to the representative from the Garden Committee. 

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