Category: Projects
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Local Community Gardens and an Update from River Roots Community Farm
Community Gardens are assets that bring not only fresh food but a much-needed sense of community. In addition to the River Roots Community Farm located in Foxburg (update below), there are other community gardens in the area. About twelve years ago, a group of church members at First Presbyterian Church in Oil City were interested… Read more
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Brownfields to Greenspace
When discussing redevelopment, we often think primarily about buildings or industrial sites being cleaned up and developed as another structure or business space. Redevelopment can also mean transforming a place back into a natural or semi-natural state. Let’s talk brownfields to greenspaces. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) defines a brownfield as “a property, the expansion,… Read more
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Woolworth’s Building Revitalization
Investing in the economic vitality of Downtown Oil City, from the bottom up. Moving away from the top-down, grant-based model for community development to a more localized, entrepreneurial approach. Revitalizing distressed communities is one of the largest and most intractable problems in America today. Rural towns in economic distress did not just happen but are… Read more
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River Roots Farm – Spring Update
Winter might seem like it would be a pretty slow time for projects like River Roots Community Farm, but behind the scenes, Community Farm Coordinator, Jeremy, has been hard at work. Throughout the winter, he has been researching, planning, and gathering materials to make 2023 a successful growing season. By using a succession planting method,… Read more
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River Roots Community Farm Update – Nov. ’22
The gardens are put to bed for the most part (green onions, chives, and parsley are still available to cut!). But, things are still moving along with the community farm, and today our new gazebo and garden shed arrived. Both were built by a local craftsman and delivered this morning to the farm site at… Read more
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Pitfalls and Best Practices
Published first on the Progress News, September 12, 2022 One of the best things about visiting other areas undergoing redevelopment is the opportunity to learn from the successes and challenges of projects in those areas – being able to analyze our own community’s similarities and differences and figure out our most practical next steps. We never… Read more
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Notes from the National Brownfield Conference
Published first on the Progress News, September 5, 2022 A couple of weeks ago, from the 15th to the 19th of August, I was lucky enough to tour a number of former brownfield sites in Oklahoma City. It wasn’t just a random trip; it was the much-delayed, long-awaited National Brownfield Conference – the first in over… Read more
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Potential of a Community Garden
Published first on the Progress News, August 29, 2022 So, what does it take to ensure a school garden or farm project is successful? Based on the USDA and the Department of Health and Human Services’ analysis of the long-running Farm to School initiative, success can take many forms, but there are some similarities across many… Read more
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Challenges of a Community Garden
Published first on the Progress News, August 15, 2022 As we get started on the work made possible by the USDA’s Farm to School grant, I’ve received a few questions from folks curious about the big picture. So, I’d like to talk a bit more about what a school garden or farm can be, and what… Read more
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River Roots Wins USDA Farm to School Grant
Published first on the Progress News, August 8, 2022 While this year has been flying by ridiculously fast, it has still been a pretty good year, all things considered. And we just got another reason to smile – the USDA approved of our vision for the River Roots Community Farm and awarded us a Farm to… Read more
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When Partnerships Get Official
Published first on the Progress News, July 11, 2022 We’ve talked in the past about partnerships in a general sense – folks working together for the common good. Municipalities working with community groups working with agencies working with private individuals, all working toward some shared goal for the benefit of their community. The River Roots Community Farm… Read more
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Summer Project Updates
Published first on the Progress News, June 20, 2022 If someone could please let me know where the year has gone, I’d much appreciate it. But, here we are in the middle of June already, so it seems like a great time for a project update! Over at the River Roots Community Farm, a generous donation… Read more