Last week Vice-President Phil Minkin, on behalf of OWLA, presented a $500 check to Michael Morley in support of the Pearl Clark Community Garden, 639 Illinois St.
There are about 25-30 residents involved in the project, working together and getting to know one another. It will soon be a showplace for the neighborhood and has already transformed a vacant, weed-covered empty lot into a place of pride for our neighborhood. It is also mitigating previous problems with flooding that were problematic for neighbors to the east. OWLA’s one-time grant of $500 will be used for a shed for tools and other storage and go toward fencing to secure the area. In the future, kids from Pinckney and the Community Nursery will be learning gardening skills in the area designated for community projects. There is a rain garden to deal with runoff and to add a flowery presence to the space. It is still a work in progress, with a grape arbor, fruit trees, and berry bushes being considered.  Photo credit: Jim Roper