GROW OUR GARDEN GROUP
MONTHLY BOARD MEETING
March 11, 2025
Minutes
Mary called the meeting to order at 6pm.
Present: Gordy Lownds, Mary Gollakner, Colleen Weinert, Bonnie Rochefort, Polly Belcher
Secretary's Report Minutes were approved as written. Polly reported that the GOGG website is scheduled for auto-renewal today.
Treasurer's Report Current balance is $8496.07.
Old Business
1) Flower boxes, hanging flower brackets, tree/flower watering.
The current date that is planned for refinishing the planter boxes is May 3rd. We will meet at 10am and bring lunch. Per Gordy we should use water-based clear varnish. Mary estimated that for 22 boxes we would need approximately 2 gallons. We will also need brushes (2-3”) and drop cloths. It was felt that old sheets work better than tarps for drop cloths.
Bonnie suggested using inserts rather than cement blocks or bricks to keep the flower pots at the right level in the boxes. She will look into getting 2X2 wood slats & nails so that we can install the inserts when we paint the planter boxes.
Flowers for this year have not been chosen yet. It was agreed that we should try and decide by our April 22nd meeting. Yellow daisies were popular as they were bright and kept flowering. A suggestion was made for using vines, perhaps vinca or sweet potato. May 29th is the last day that Chenier’s said that we could pick them up. Polly will check on last year’s dates for when we picked up the flowers and when we did the planting. Budget for the flowers is $1500 (no trees this year).
It was agreed that brackets for the hanging flowers should be able to hold 50 pounds. Gordy will look into some options. Mary plans to check with Northern Machinery in Danforth.
The trailer may or may not make it through the next watering season. The Village is meeting Wednesday and will discuss getting a new trailer. The GOGG group discussed using 5-gallon buckets to water instead of the tank on the trailer. This year we will only be watering the trees that were planted last year, and then we will be done watering trees. The pump could still be used for watering the hanging flowers, but we would not need the tank. It was noted that if we switched to buckets, we would have to recalculate the amount of fertilizer added so that it would be per bucket and not for the whole tank. Mary will work on getting a watering schedule ready. It was agreed that we should decide on a watering system by the beginning of May.
2) Banners, brackets, signs. The budget for banners is currently $2,000.00, which includes brackets, although we have not chosen them yet. The group briefly discussed the possibility of signs, like the one at the entrance to Garden. Mary suggested one by the flagpole, maybe 18” high. No decisions were made.
3) Fall Festival Updates - music, pumpkins, raffle baskets, children’s games, cake walk, cider press, chili, pickleball (better signage), drumming aerobics, etc. Fundraising – flower meter ($1200 for flowers and $2000 for banners) and possible raffle fundraiser (Roberta Hero).
We will be using the flower meter again this year.
Polly had spoken to Margaret Richard, who said that her group planned on singing again this year. Colleen will check with John & Sara.
We will plan on painting pumpkins again. It’s unclear whether we’ll have a pumpkin large enough to have a weight-guessing contest.
Colleen noted that we would need a license renewal for prizes.
A suggestion was made to get permission from the Village to see if we can go on after 8pm, possibly to 9pm. Last year there were complaints about the noise toward the end.
Roberta Hero has proposed a fundraiser, a kayak-a-thon. There would be 10 people entered at $100 each, with a potential for sponsors. They would start at the creek by Ricky & Vicky and end at the Dock. The group discussed liability/insurance, weather issues, and the possibility of having a walk-a-thon instead, or as well.
We could let Roberta run the kayak-a-thon, say in June, and she would be responsible for the entire program. The walk could be a 5K (3 mile) and be held the morning of the festival. We could start the walk at Monarch Meadow downtown, take the trail behind Colleen’s to Little Harbor Rd and then do a private section behind Ranguettes. We could sell GROW OUR GARDEN shirts on the day of the festival.
If GOGG members participated in the walk, it could delay the start of the festival. Colleen suggested checking with the Village re liability for the marathon. No final decisions were made.
There was a brief discussion regarding the name of the festival. Should it be Harvest Festival again, or Homecoming, or Fall? No decision was made.
4) Improvements to the children’s area in the park. Information re cost?
At this time, we do not have enough information to make any investment in playground equipment. It would be helpful to know if the Village or Township would be willing to go in on something. Equipment can be anything from a few thousand dollars to over a hundred thousand (a pre-made pirate ship playground piece was for sale online for $50K). There is also the possibility of applying for a grant. No final decisions were made.
5) Final cleanup of the Peninsula Pioneers' things in the township hall, scheduled for April 22nd, in conjunction with the monthly meeting, and we tentatively agreed to meet at 4:30pm.
We may be able to store some things at the Village Hall. Other things can be donated or thrown away. We will do the attic cleaning at 4:30pm and hold our monthly meeting afterward at 6pm.
New Business
Float for GOGG. It was proposed that GOGG have a float in the 4th of July parade. We could have a small wagon or trailer with the GOGG logo, and kids with flower faces and a donation jug. No decision was made. Note: Village Artisans are not having their salad luncheon this year but are having a pig roast on the 4th.
Kayak fundraiser. See Fall Festival Updates.
Inserts for planters. See Flower boxes, hanging flower brackets, tree/flower watering.
Other: Bonnie noted that the shed needs painting and has slats that need to be fixed.