Depave - March News - note, event on Sat. you must RSVP for, hope to see you there!

[Albert Kaufman]

Hello Depavers!

Spring has finally sprung and it is time to get out your work gloves!
We have a couple of opportunities for some work parties and are
looking for volunteers to help out!

Depaving Opportunity!
On Saturday, March 21st, we will be partnering with the Mt. Scott
Learning Center to depave part of their parking lot at MSLC! They are
hoping to turn it into a green space for students and community
members, and need volunteers to help with the depaving. They are
looking for 40-50 volunteers. I know there are Depavers out there
ready to bust up some cement, so here is your chance! The information
is as follows:


* Date: Saturday, March 21
* Time: 10 am - 4 pm
* Location:MSLC High School at Laurelwood Church (6148 SE Holgate
Blvd. in Portland)
* Requirements: Event will go on rain or shine so come prepared
for the appropriate weather. Tools, gloves, safety gear, drinks and
lunch will be provided.


To help MSLC with volunteer organization, please note that you are
required to sign up for the event if you plan to attend. To RSVP for
depaving at this event, please contact Lauren Senkyr at
lauren...@gmail.com or (503) 231-2110.

We also have some updates on Fargo Garden, as well as some more
opportunities for skilled volunteers on other tasks! Please continue
reading!

Fargo Garden Update
Fargo Garden is the site on N. Williams and NE Fargo, where we did our
large depaving event in June of 2008. The site is approximately 3,000
square feet. The project was funded through a grant from the (City of
Portland) Bureau of Environmental Services, and includes transforming
the now-depaved lot into a 'food forest' and community gathering
space.

After many months of work, we submitted our 'Site Development Plan,'
including stormwater management features, to the Portland Bureau of
Development Services (BDS) on March 2nd. We hope to receive our permit
by the end of this week (by 3/20) and then to spring into action with
the rest of our work. What does that entail? Removing the remaining
gravel from the site, creating paths and bioswales, adding lots of
organic material, finishing the fence and gates... and planting! And
celebrating! Which brings us to our next bit of information...

Skilled volunteers needed!
We will do a shout-out to everyone as soon as we are ready to schedule
work parties. First, though, we need some folks with certain skills,
to help us get to that point.


* Skilled Bobcat operator: We are planning to use a (mini?-)
Bobcat to scrape several inches of gravel off the top of the entire
site, and to do the initial site grading -- we need to dig out 2
bioswales and several paths. A skilled Bobcat operator could greatly
improve the accuracy of the work with the Bobcat, and reduce the need
for manual labor. (We're planning to rent one, but would rather borrow
a free one if you have any leads!)
* Site-Grading project planner(s) and/or leader(s): We have
detailed site plans with elevations and grades for the bioswales and
paths, and we need to follow them carefully. Can you read grade plans,
operate laser levels, and manage volunteers? We need someone like you
to help plan our next volunteer work days, and help lead them! Work day
(s) will be on one or more weekends in April, planning will be on
weekends or evenings before then.
* Fargo Garden project organizer(s): There will be several work
parties at the site over the course of the spring, and we need help
organizing them: Advertising, documenting, photographing, getting
volunteers to sign waivers, coordinating snacks, renting equipment,
and numerous other details. Do you have a lot of initiative, strong
organizational skills, and an hour or two per week between now and the
end of June to help keep us on task and organized?


To volunteer for any of these roles, contact Kasandra at
kasan...@yahoo.com.

We also need additional help regarding fundraising for potential
depaving projects to help lower the cost for site owners and eliminate
any barriers that may hold back some really awesome depaving projects.
The Fargo Garden project was funded by a grant from the City of
Portland, but Depave has no ongoing sources of funding. Would you like
to raise money to help Depave do future projects? We need one or more
people *with initiative* to pursue other grants and to come up with
other fundraising strategies. If interested in helping out with
fundraising, please contact Kasandra at kasan...@yahoo.com.

That is all the updates for now. Please keep a look out for Fargo
Garden work parties coming in the next month, and also watch out for
updates for our Depave Summer! Time is ticking on some parking lots
around Portland!

Depave has been created to inspire and promote the removal of
unnecessary concrete and asphalt from urban areas, reducing stormwater
pollution and increasing the amount of land available for habitat
restoration, urban farming, trees, native vegetation, and beauty, thus
providing us with greater connections to the natural world.

Thank you all for your continued support and interest in Depave!

-Depave