Twenty-five community residents attended a Community Garden Project meeting at the Hall this past September 22. This brings the total number of people interested in being involved in the project to 32! When the idea of community garden in Mt Pleasant was first floated, we really weren't sure how much interest there would be. But the enthusiastic exchange at the meeting made it clear that a community garden is a great idea for Mt Pleasant. Among the people who attended there is lots of energy and wonderfully diverse talents and experience. Bringing these together will go a long way to bringing our garden into being.

Discussion was facilitated by Gael Blackhall of the Community Garden Resource Network of the Calgary Horticultural Society. We brainstormed such questions as: what will a community garden do to make Mount Pleasant a better place to live; what words or phrases describe the Mount Pleasant community garden; what will people want to learn; and what do we do to make everyone feel welcome? You can see our answers to these questions and updates about the project on our new Google Group site at http://groups.google.com/group/mpcgp

We are currently discussing with City Parks two possible locations for the garden. One is the Arts Centre fields, and the other is a small green space on a residential street. For both sites we need to consider carefully existing uses of the spaces and water supply - a critical issue for all community gardens in Calgary. And, once we have a more developed proposal for the garden, we will need to apply to the City for approval to use the land for a community garden.

We hope to hold our next meeting in mid-November. At that meeting we will work on the design of the garden, taking into account the sites available and the desires and visions of our gardeners. All community residents are welcome to attend this meeting and keep track of the project on our Google Group site. Another important step will be organizing our group more formally. In the meantime, if you'd like your name added to our e-mail distribution list or if you'd more information about the project you can also contact Julia Murphy at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 289-7305.

Thank you to the Mount Pleasant Community Association and the members of its Board for their continuing support of the project.

NEXT COMMUNITY GARDEN PROJECT MEETING IS

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 2009, 7 pm

IN THE LOWER COMMUNITY HALL

Julia Murphy and Holly Drake

In the fall of 2007 the Community Association discussed ideas for environmental projects in our community. We -  Julia Murphy and Holly Drake - responded to the call for volunteers to spearhead the effort and became the Green Initiatives Team. Holly Sinclair, MPCA President, introduced us in the April 2008 Pulse. Since then we have been keen to hear any and all ideas you might have for reducing the environmental impact of our daily lives and making our community cleaner, greener and more hospitable to nature.

Leaf and Pumpkin Recylcing

The City of Calgary's Annual Leaf & Pumpkin Composting Program runs from October 3 - November 8, 2009.

Residents can drop off their bagged leaves and pumpkins at Confederation Park (905 30 Ave NW)

Last fall, 63 trees were planted in Mount Pleasant under the city's NeighbourWood program, which was created to empower individuals and community associations to take a stewardship role for the care and preservation of Calgary's urban forest.
If you took advantage of this program and volunteered to sponsor a tree, here are a few reminders for you: