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The City of Grand Rapids has been tweaking their master plan. Part of their efforts to get the word out led to participation by Grand Rapids in National Parking Day, which Urban Pharm participated in last September. I also had the pleasure of attending a couple of the Green Gatherings with fellow Grand Rapidians to compile our visions of the city and its overall direction regarding planning. The attendance and feedback was awesome, and the ideas presented (and listened to by City Hall) are exciting to think about. I’m talking bike lanes, mass transit, expanded parks, alternative energy, and so on.

Check out some of the proposed changes to the Master Plan at the Green Grand Rapids website. Also, if you want to get involved in the planning process, mark you calendar for May 13th at 6:30 at Harrison Park Elementary. It sounds like this gathering will address how to take the ideas and make them a reality.

Last Friday, September 19th, we participated in National Parking Day. It was the first time that Grand Rapids participated in this annual, nationwide event. We had a blast!

The basic idea behind the event was to make people think hard about how we use our public spaces. Normally, the streets are used to house vehicles. Not on Park(ing) Day. Downtown Grand Rapids was home to about 20 small “parks” that replaced normal, metered parking spaces. For the day, there was definitely increased vibrancy downtown as passer-by’s and participants alike were invited to hang out in urban oases. We heard many comments like “They should do this every day” and “You guys should turf the entire street.” I think the day succeeded in raising awareness about how we use our public spaces. As the City of Grand Rapids works to write the new master plan (Green Grand Rapids), I hope to see more public space allocated to green and community space. I think many downtown-goers from Park(ing) Day will agree.

We arrived at about 7:30 am to meet the man from AAA Turf (Hudsonville, MI). He dropped off about 350 sf of sod that became the foundation of our “park.” After dirtying our hands and clothing laying down the sod, we set out chairs, yard games (corn hole, specifically), a table filled with snacks and beverages, and a radio (you have to have tunes!).

It turned out to be a beautiful day. As the morning wore on, we had a couple clients stop by for brief meetings. Between work, we managed to fit in a couple games of corn hole before lunch. Andy Dragt, from Rapid Growth Media (www.rapidgrowthmedia.com), swung by to capture the events of the day on video. You can check those out here:

We were later greeted by members of the television media and press. I was happy to see that many of them took a day off from covering the bad news in the world to cover Park(ing) Day–a day of community and “greenness.”

As noon rolled around, it was time to fire up the grill. Unfortunately, none of us had a clue when it came to charcoal. It took three grown men, a bottle of charcoal lighter fluid, and three arms of singed hair to get the coals hot enough. By 12:30, the first batch of burgers were ready, and the crowd started forming. We asked for donations to Habitat for Humanity in exchange for a meal, and were able to collect $80.00 throughout the day. Not a lot of money, but every little bit helps.

Tenants, attorneys, property owners, friends, strangers, homeless people, rich people, coworkers, contractors, and just about everybody else you can imagine stopped by for a meal and t-shirt. At one point, we had a 30 minute wait for a burger. I was very happy to share our park with all of these people, and I hope that they took something away from our efforts.

After the rush, it was back to relaxation. We took on some people in corn hole, though I lost every game.

As the day winded down, we slowly dismantled our park and rolled up the sod to donate to Habitat for Humanity. With tired eyes, dirty fingernails, and singed arms, we made our way to Flanagans to cap off the busy day. It was a great day in Downtown Grand Rapids. I hope that this event continues and grows every year. Please plan on coming down to visit or create your own park next year. Thanks to everybody who stopped by to share the day with us.

Until next Park(ing) Day…

Part 2: The Efficient Engine: Mechanical Components of a Green Rehab

Now, things get a little more complex. The mechanical systems in a house are extremely important to the green concept as they are responsible for all of the energy consumed in the home. You may consider making additional green efforts with the mechanicals [...]

Introduction

The intent of this publication is not to shove the “green” issue down anyone’s throat. I believe strongly in the issue for my own reasons, but I think that everybody should find their own reasons to value making green decisions. With this piece, I intend to share both HOW to make house rehabs [...]