PanFlora Gardens: just in time for spring!
In June 2015, a few local citizens imagined a community garden on the south boulevard of Pandora Avenue, as a place that would beautify, feed, calm, and connect the neighbourhood.
Local citizens, businesses owners and employees went to work with the City of Victoria, the LifeCycles Project Society, and the Greater Victoria Placemaking Network to construct a pilot community garden on the City’s boulevard.
The sturdy planter boxes, built by Ian Welsh from donated materials, arrive on site.
With the help of generous donors, and some hard work, that dream is now a reality. An official launch was held on March 21, 2016. PanFlora Gardens is located in the 900 block of Pandora Avenue, adjacent to Our Place.
The planters are arranged on the boulevard.
“This project began by a small task force that came together to address some of the challenges on the 900 block of Pandora. Building on the gifts, assets and skills of those in attendance the PanFlora Garden took a challenge and turned it into an great opportunity to grow, together,” said Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps.
“Our Place is excited to partner with our neighbours on this project,” says Don Evans, executive director of Our Place. “There is a meditative and rewarding experience to gardening that offers people a small piece of tranquility. We can’t wait to see what community grows from this.”
“We are very excited to continue to work with the City and our community partners to help support the PanFlora Garden,” says Maurita Prato, Executive Director of LifeCycles Project Society. “Community gardens not only allow people to enjoy nutritious, locally-grown food, but also foster social connections and bolster wellbeing while enhancing biodiversity and the urban environment.”
Karen Wilkinson of Our Place and Jim LaMorte of Greater Victoria Placemaking Network each put in many hours to make PanFlora Gardens happen.
“Finding this site and getting approval from the City of Victoria is the culmination of more than eight months of research and meetings with various community members,” says Lorne Daniel of the Greater Victoria Placemaking Network. “The Pandora gardeners have set a positive example of how a community can grow, and how Placemaking can work.”
Special thanks to Placemaking volunteer Jim LaMorte for guiding this project through!
And thanks again to all the community-minded businesses and individuals who contributed materials, time and skills:
|
Organization |
Representative |
Support |
|
Buckerfields |
Travis Young |
Food, flower plantings |
|
City of Victoria |
Alia Johnson |
Land, Permit Media Relations |
|
Digger Dale Contracting |
Dale Welch |
Box construction and delivery |
|
Flo n’ Live Greens, Organic Farm |
Frank O’Brien |
Organic fertilizer |
|
Greater Victoria Placemaking Network |
Jim LaMorte Molly LaMorte |
Facilitation Sign Design |
|
Island Health |
Kelly Hanna |
Meeting Space Gardeners |
|
LifeCycles Project |
Maurita Prato |
Project Sponsor Insurance Coverage |
|
Michell Excavating Ltd. |
Darrel Michell |
Soil |
|
Our Place Society |
Patricia O’Byrne |
Meeting Space Gardeners |
|
reFUSE Resource Recovery |
Neil Hodge |
Garden waste composting, soil |
|
Shatterbox Coffee Bar |
Kalen Harris |
Meeting Space Gardeners |
|
The Reike Clinic |
Karen Wilkinson |
Head Gardener |
|
Victoria Conservatory of Music |
Jane Butler-McGregor |
Meeting Space Gardeners |
|
Volunteer Architect |
Ian Welsh |
Garden design Planter box construction |
|
Wenstob Timber |
Kevin and Sarha Wenstob |
Wood for planter boxes |
