by Diana Louise Carter | Tuesday, August 25, 2015 | EcoDistrict, GardenAerial, Greentopia, Lewis Stess
Greentopia is taking another step toward creating an ecodistrict in Rochester by moving ahead on hiring a manager for what will become the Rochesterville EcoDistrict. Following advertisements for the manager position, 50 people from around the country applied earlier this summer and the district’s critical team has narrowed the selection to eight finalists. A decision is expected in September and Greentopia hopes to have the person start work in early October.
The district’s name reflects a historic part of Rochester included in the district, which also encompasses part of Rochester’s downtown, the High Falls area, Frontier Field, Kodak Tower, the new Monroe Community College Campus, and Genesee Brewery.
The manager’s job will be to plan and organize the first such district in New York State, mostly by bringing together groups of stakeholders. Ecodistricts – Portland, OR, has several — are designated and planned in a grassroots manner to help a neighborhood achieve a better living environment. Potential benefits could be incentives and policies that help create a district-wide composting system or a bulk discounts for solar power. The district meshes nicely with Greentopia’s efforts to create the GardenAerial surrounding the High Falls.
“This will be the only ecodistrict in the US that has this kind of situation: the only one with a falls in it,” said Greentopia co-founder Lewis Stess.
Stess said businesses or residents often ask if the district will impose additional taxes or require participation. The short answer: no. A longer answer might include that grassroots discussions would be expected to consider new initiatives by consensus in the district. But Stess says: “Nobody’s making anybody do anything.”
by Diana Louise Carter | Wednesday, August 5, 2015 | GardenAerial, Green Visions, Greentopia
Imagine sailing over High Falls. The wind whipping your hair, the spectacular view surrounds you. You start out from a promontory on the east side of the Genesee River and you zip along at a thrilling pace until you land on the west side near the bottom of the gorge that runs through the city of Rochester.
That experience — perhaps the largest permanent zip line in North America — could happen as soon as the late summer of 2016, in Phase 2 of Greentopia’s GardenAerial project. GardenAerial aims to transform the Middle Gorge of the Genesee into a world-class showcase of sustainable and sensitive development in harmony with the natural beauty and ecology of the Gorge. (Phase 1, the FlourGarden in Brown’s Race, is due to be completed this fall.) Greentopia is spearheading the effort as it seeks the necessary approvals for take-off and landing spots, as well as additional grant funding. The state has already funded a feasibility study on greater public access to this area that will become the GardenAerial. Estimated cost for the ride is an affordable $20, a fraction of what Bellevue, WA., charges for a zipline in one of its urban parks.
For an idea of what the High Falls zipline experience might be like and how it fits into the GardenAerial, view this video.
See what WHAM-TV Channel 13 is saying about the GardenAerial zipline.
by Diana Louise Carter | Wednesday, August 5, 2015 | Greentopia
Excitement is building this week for the Dinner on the Bridge, Greentopia’s first gala fundraiser. Greentopia has offered many free events in the past, and this fundraiser will help it continue to offer them in the future. Come July 16 (or the 17th if it rains Thursday) 200 people will share a farm-to-fork dinner concocted by dynamic chefs from seven local restaurants.
As far as can be determined, this will be the first time a dining event has been held on the Pont du Rennes Bridge, high above the Genesee River.
The sold-out event includes entertainment in the form of strolling musicians and a light show on High Falls, sampling of wines, beer and liquor from local beverage companies, and desserts by three local sweets makers. Proceeds will help fuel the Greentopia operating budget.
For those who couldn’t afford the freight ($200 a seat for this historic event,) stay tuned, says Greentopia co-founder Michael A. Philipson. There will be future fundraisers and many more free events.
(Note: this item was originally posted on July 14.)
by Diana Louise Carter | Wednesday, August 5, 2015 | Development, FlourGarden, Green Visions, Greentopia
This will be an exciting summer for Greentopia: construction starts soon on the FlourGarden, the first section of the GardenAerial to become a reality.
The $800,000 project, designed by NYC’s Landgarden landscape architecture firm, will be completed in the fall. Greentopia co-founder Michael Philipson calls the FlourGarden the “proof of concept” that will provide a window into what the larger GardenAerial will be like.
This 300-foot-long garden or running water and native plants will feature actual millstones that used to grind flour along the Genesee River in the city once nicknamed the Flour City. Native plants will grow alongside a water channel in the historic Brown’s Race. At night, glass stones on the bottom of the water channel will glow with light. And nearly 500 acrylic rods, also illuminated, will wave like cattails. In all, six sections of the Genesee River will be represented in the FlourGarden.
Pedestrians on Brown’s Race will be able to walk along, over and into the FlourGarden. Stone bleacher seating at the north end, outfitted with outlets, will allow people to sit or work on laptops while they enjoy the sound and sites of the FlourGarden. And a deck over the mid-section of the garden will provide an intimate gathering space or stage for future events.
If you’re in the area checking out the view of the High Falls from the Pont de Rennes Bridge, stop by and see our progress!
(Note: this post was originally published earlier this summer.)
by Diana Louise Carter | Wednesday, July 22, 2015 | Green Visions, Greentopia
At the end of a rainy-turned-sunny day, two young women are packing up at the Green Visions gardens on Rochester’s northwest side before planning to walk to their nearby homes. Tiani Jennings, 20, has already won another job with her Green Visions credentials. Tamyha Jones, 18, is hoping the certifications she has earned by working with Green Visions will help her secure a better-paying job the next time she looks for painting work.
Jennings is in her third year of working with the April-to-October job training program and she’s now an assistant site manager. Jones (pictured above) used to volunteer at the Smith Street site when her older sister worked for Green Visions. This year is her first year as an actual employee at the garden, where she plants, weeds and waters flowers, and makes bouquets.
Morgan Barry, the site manager who oversees the program for Greentopia, said Green Visions currently has 13 employees who each work up to 20 hours a week. Many of them also juggle a second job, school, or classes to earn their General Education Diploma. Besides working the gardens in the JOSANA Neighborhood, the Green Visions employees sell bouquets from the site and at the Rochester City Public Market on Saturdays. Flowers are also for sale through the Greentopia web site. The flowers serve multiple purposes as they:
• Provide income in a neighborhood with few jobs
• Provide 22 weeks (at least twice as long as summer programs) of job training during the growing season
• Make the soil healthier
• Beautify the neighborhood
• Create community engagement.
Jennings said she is planning to move into the home health care field, but she’s earned marketable skills and support by working with Green Visions. “This job has helped me from the very, very first day,” she said. “I’m 20, I’m very young, but I have management experience, I have a great resume. And, Morgan is always in my corner. I know I can count on him if I need him.”
And Greentopia is in this neighborhood’s corner, too.
