Hunter Park Gardenhouse

Address	400 S. Holmes St. (near: Kalamazoo St. & Holmes St.)

By now all of you have noticed that big “plastic house” at Hunter Park! Yes, the GardenHouse project is well underway, and No, it’s not a covered swimming pool!

If you are reading this news for the first time, you may not know that the project was funded by a Cool Cities grant, awarded to Allen Neighborhood Center and the City of Lansing. The GardenHouse (GH) is part of a “master plan” of improvements for Hunter Park identified in a neighborhood planning process in 2005. The path was the first improvement, followed by the GardenHouse.

Here is the Spring into Summer GardenHouse Update… This spring we had topsoil and woodchips delivered inside the greenhouse for future gardening beds and pathways. Thanks City of Lansing Forestry department and local tree trimmers for the woodchips!

The volunteer help of IBEW, Local 352 installed water and electricity to the GH site, with equipment and supplies donated by the Board of Water and Light. The City of Lansing Construction and Maintenance department has begun to complete the interior water and electrical needs (including hooking up our heating and venting systems). Harold Armour, City Construction and Maintenance helped not only with the water hook up but also helped to get a new drinking fountain to the park and had delivered the terrazzo flower planter, donated by Habitat Restore! Thanks Harold & crew, Habitat, Parks and Recreation, Board of Water and Light, and the hardworking guys from IBEW 352!

Tom Weber, Supervisor of Construction and Maintenance, has been instrumental in moving this whole GardenHouse project forward. Thanks Tom! H & C Earthworks construction, of Bath, MI have done a great job getting all the pieces of the GH up and in place. They are waiting for a few replacement panels to be shipped and then will finish installing the doors, roof vent and wall panels.

JT Stout, local Leslie Street resident, generously worked for 2 days in the hot sun tilling and preparing the exterior GH soil for flowers. Thanks JT! On Friday, June 23rd, as an appropriate summer solstice activity about 20 neighbors and friends (adults and kids!) planted nearly 1000 petunia flowers for 4 hours in the late afternoon sun! Thanks to each of you!

We have found a local garden shed builder, B. C. Barns, and have ordered a 8X16 shed to be built and delivered by the end of July! Finally we can store our gardening tools and hoses on site!

Soon, we hope to be completing construction and landscaping more of the greenhouse area with the generous help of neighbors and friends. And, we are developing a “master plan” for neighborhood uses of this beautiful Hunter Park GardenHouse!