Taming Lido's invasives

By Cathy Zollo

Published: Friday, December 26, 2008 at 1:00 a.m.
Last Modified: Friday, December 26, 2008 at 8:01 a.m.

LIDO KEY - A cool breeze cuts across North Lido Park, stirring sighs from Australian pines and drying the sweat on six volunteer lumberjacks.

Through the trees around them, you catch glimpses of blue -- the Gulf of Mexico to the west and to the east, Pansey Bayou.

Three years ago, when county workers and volunteers first attacked the riot of Brazilian pepper trees here, no water was visible through the underbrush. Not a whisper of wind made it back here.

The tangle of trees also made the city's largest park a haven for drug use and outdoor sexual encounters that drove away nature lovers and families.

"It was an area that you were afraid to go into," says Sandy Bower, who has vacationed or lived on Lido for the past 30 years. "It wasn't a safe place, and by no means was it a family environment."

But North Lido Park is again a favorite of nearby residents, birders and beachgoers, thanks to volunteer work and collaboration between the county and city.

It is also a favorite of birder, amateur naturalist and veteran police officer Jeff Karr, who took on this 71 acres as a personal project three years ago.

He gets distracted from talking about reclaiming North Lido and points out a peregrine falcon skimming the treetops.

"You also have some blue-gray gnatcatchers," he says. "I can hear those, and you have some downy woodpeckers, and you also have some red-bellied woodpeckers moving through with them."

Click here to continue reading article at Herald Tribune.com

Santa Comes Early for SLCO - SNN Video

Construction Company Willis Smith is donating construction repair to the building that was damaged over the summer as the result of a high-speed police chase through Newtown. Click here to visit the SCLO website and learn more about the Community Non-Profit.

Living Green - Locally grown organic food - WWSB Article & Video

Everyone has stocked up for Thanksgiving, trying to create a feast for family and friends. And some will do it with locally grown, organic foods.

Those who love organic produce know all about Jessica's stand in North Sarasota. They are firm believers that organic food grown here at home is a win-win.

Bill Pischer is harvesting some of his organic spinach. It will go on sale soon about a hundred yards from where it's grown at Jessica's Organic Farm. You can get an appetite walking down the aisles of produce - all ripe and ready to eat.

Loyal customers say it's a gold mine for those who love fresh, organic fruits and vegetables. "I'm a gercen therapist and I teach people how to become well by eating fresh, organic veggies...This is the place to come."

Owner Bill Pischer is a man of few words, but he does have an idea why people love what he grows. "The freshness. Something that isn't transported thousands of miles, something indigenous to the community...sure."

And this story gets even greener. Andrew Noune will deliver your fresh organic produce on his bicycle. "Bill Pischer has been doing a great job with this farm for the last 30 years, growing some of the healthiest, freshest food available. And what better way to get it than by a bicycle. There's no emissions, no money spent on gas, the environment is sustained and it just goes to prove these environmental solutions may be right under our nose all along and we just have to enact them."

Andrew says his longest delivery is about 7 miles one way. But he and his sister do have a car they can use for longer deliveries. 25% of their profits will go to the Alliance for Responsible Transportation, or ART, which promotes biking, walking and public transit in Sarasota.

Jessica's stand is on 47th Street in Sarasota. You can visit their website at www.jessicasorganicfarm.com/, or visit Andrews website at www.harvestcycle.com/.

As the price of oil increases, organically farmed food is the most profitable option

Organic food: no flash in the pan fad
Far from being niche, our research shows that as the price of oil increases, organically farmed food is the most profitable option

Peter Melchett
guardian.co.uk,
Wednesday September 03 2008 15:30 BST

Are sales of organic food dropping as a result of the economic recession? Retail sales of organic food rose by 25-30% in 2006 and 2007 – worldwide, sales have grown by an average of 30% a year for 30 years. Some slowing down of growth is certain this year, as with all food sales. But the picture varies – Asda has seen their fastest-ever growth in organic sales in the first six months of this year, mainly because they have made more organic products available in their stores, and because they are attracting more customers. Waitrose say their organic sales are holding up. Half of our expenditure on food is now spent on eating out rather than in the supermarkets, and here organic sales are growing strongly. In the meantime, people buying organic fruit, veg, meat and other food through organic vegetable box schemes are enjoying the best-quality food at prices that are often the same or even lower than non-organic equivalents in the supermarkets. But farming and food is now the UK's largest industry actually producing goods rather than services, and all farmers and food manufacturers will suffer until the economy starts to recover.

While this short-term slow down in the growth of organic food is inevitable, a more fundamental question is whether this is the start of a longer-term trend. Have organic sales reached some natural limit? Is organic simply a fad, an expensive indulgence for well-off Guardian readers? As my colleague and fellow organic farmer Helen Browning said in a Guardian article last week:
Ethical shoppers are not just middle class faddists. The assumptions that those on less than middle incomes just don't care, can't be bothered, aren't interested in better food anymore, or the health of farm animals, or our environment, are hideously patronising and fundamentally flawed.

So is the idea that organic farming a food is simply a "niche".

CLICK HERE TO CONTINUE READING ARTICLE AT THE GUARDIAN UK

47th Street House auctioned off

College students lament loss of communal home - The end of the 47th Street Saga continues

By Carol E. Lee
Published Thursday, June 19, 2008 at 4:30 a.m.
Last updated Thursday, June 19, 2008 at 12:27 p.m.

SARASOTA — The north Sarasota house where New College students have lived communally since 1992 was sold in a public auction Wednesday morning for $100.

The buyer was HSBC Bank USA, which held the mortgage that the home's owner failed to pay. There were no other bidders for the house.

The tenants at "The 47th Street House," as it is called, vowed to again attempt to buy the home, even as they were told they had 10 days to move out. Six of them sat in the front row of the courtroom during the foreclosure sale of their residence, an anticlimactic event that took just minutes.

"I wish we could have done something," tenant and New College graduate Sarah Kell, 28, said after the sale.

"I felt a mixture of anger and frustration," added tenant April Doner, 25. "I really hope we can save the house."

The renters said they tried to buy the house after learning in January that their landlord had not used their $2,075-per-month rent to pay her mortgage.

They said the bank rejected their offer to buy the house.

The 47th Street House was built by New College student Al Leonard in 1992 with yellow pine and cypress lumber from local sawmills. His goal was to create an off-campus residence where New College students could live in a communal atmosphere.

The house has served that purpose ever since. Chores are divided evenly among the tenants, and they hold potluck dinners and house meetings every other week at their kitchen table. The tradition became threatened when Leonard, now 53 and living in Vermont, sold the home to Carmen Palomino for $190,000 in 2006.

Palomino said in an interview this week that she could not afford her mortgage after her homeowners' insurance increased.

"Heartbreaking," tenant Lynn Jacobsen, 26, said of the situation with the house. "It's part of our life."

Average Shoppers Are Willing To Pay A Premium For Locally Produced Food

ScienceDaily (Jun. 8, 2008) — New research suggests that the average supermarket shopper is willing to pay a premium price for locally produced foods, providing some farmers an attractive option to enter a niche market that could boost their revenues.

The study also showed that shoppers at farm markets are willing to pay almost twice as much extra as retail grocery shoppers for the same locally produced foods. Both kinds of shoppers also will pay more for guaranteed fresh produce and tend to favor buying food produced by small farms over what they perceive as corporate operations, according to the study.

“Our conclusion is that if a farmer wants to consider producing food for local distribution and marketing it locally, there are people who are willing to pay more for it,” said Marvin Batte, a co-author of the study and the Fred N. VanBuren professor of agricultural, environmental and development economics at Ohio State University. “We are not saying that we should be producing all of our foods locally, just that this may be a viable, profitable activity for farmers.”

And what’s good for farmers also benefits consumers in this case, said Batte, director of the research project.

“This is an indication that certain groups out there value locally produced food and if farmers deliver that, it makes these consumers happier, so it’s good for them, too,” he said.

Click here to read entire article at Science Daily.com

NEW: 47th Street House sells for $100

Carol E. Lee
Published Wednesday, June 18, 2008 at 10:43 a.m.
Last updated Wednesday, June 18, 2008 at 10:47 a.m.

SARASOTA — The north Sarasota house where New College students have lived communally since 1992 sold in a public auction this morning for $100.

The buyer was HSBC Bank USA, which held the mortgage that the home’s owner failed to pay.

The tenants at “The 47th Street House,” as it is called, vowed to again attempt to purchase the home, even as they were told they have ten days to move out.

Six of them sat front row in the courtroom during the foreclosure sale of their residence, an anticlimactic purchase that took just minutes.

“I wish we could have done something,” tenant and New College graduate Sarah Kell, 28, said after the sale.

“I felt a mixture of anger and frustration,” added tenant April Doner, 25. “I really hope we can save the house.”

The renters said they tried to buy the house after learning in January that their landlord had not used their $2,075-a-month rent to pay her mortgage.

They said the bank denied their offer.

The 47th Street House was built by New College student Al Leonard in 1992 with yellow pine and cypress lumber from local sawmills. His goal was to create an off-campus residence where New College students could live in a communal atmosphere.

The house has served that purpose ever since: Chores are divided evenly among the tenants; they hold potluck dinners and house meetings every other week at their kitchen table.

The tradition became threatened when Leonard, now 53 and living in Vermont, sold the home to Carmen Palomino for $190,000 in 2006.

Palomino said in an interview this week that she could not afford her mortgage after her homeowners’ insurance increased.

“Heartbreaking,” tenant Lynn Jacobsen, 26, said of the situation with the house. “It’s part of our life.”

"House built by students foreclosed" - The end of an era - 47th Street House

Class finishes habitat for tigers

By THERESE HOUNSELL CORRESPONDENT
Published Sunday, June 8, 2008 at 4:30 a.m.
Last updated Sunday, June 8, 2008 at 2:40 a.m.

Kay Rosaire stands outside the big cat exercise habitat, where Casey Altier's waterfall project is near completion, and speaks warmly of the girl who spent much of last year fundraising and coordinating material and labor costs to create something that brings pleasure to the tigers both women love so much.

Big Cat Habitat and Gulf Coast Sanctuary, a sprawling maze of chain-link-fenced pens, exotic animal habitats and circus performer and big-tent detritus, is hidden in plain sight.

The exotic animal sanctuary is just off Palmer Avenue in Sarasota, where Rosaire has operated the nonprofit since 1987, mostly from a cramped but well-cooled on-site trailer that serves as office and home.

She recalls meeting Altier last year and thinking there was much more to the Pine View School teenager than her focused concern for wildlife.

"Other kids have come out here and offered to build habitats," Rosaire said. "One kid wanted to construct an alligator pen, which we thought was great because so many people come to Florida and never see an alligator."

But plans for that project fell through, and for the last year the economy has pinched off financial support from some of the Habitat's corporate sponsors. Survival is not just a struggle in the wild, Rosaire said.

So when Altier came visiting last year at the encouragement of her Girl Scout leader, both women felt they found something special. "It was perfect," Altier recalled from her hospital bed at All Children's Hospital where the 18-year-old was taking her last round of chemotherapy the last week of May.

Click here to read entire article at Herald Tribune.com

Local Company Harvest Cycle in New York Times Article "Salad Days for the Internet"

Here's the blurb about SRQ's local organic produce delivery service, Harvest Cycle, in the New York Times Style section. The article discusses the trend of purchasing food and groceries on the internet.

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Some online delivery sites go even further to save energy. In Sarasota, Fla., for instance, the owner of a tiny new company called Harvestcycle.com relies on bicycles alone (pedaled by himself and his sister) to deliver DeSoto Lakes organic produce from a nearby farm to eight customers in a nine-mile radius.

“We’re not business people, we don’t have any money, we don’t have a $30,000 car to take care of or to gas up at a cost of 50 cents a mile,” said Andrew Noune, the founder of Harvestcycle.com, which started in February. “I work in the fields, and one day my friend had this idea I should deliver produce on my way home. My friend said, ‘Dude, you should totally set up a Web site and have people shop online.’ ”

Like many services, Harvestcycle.com also sells a broader selection of products distributed through an organic wholesaler, but allows customers to micro-manage orders to a degree unheard of even a few years ago. Customers can order only what’s local (loosely defined as having been grown or raised within a day’s drive) or only what’s in season or only organic — or a mix adjusted each week.

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Click here to read entire article at the New York Times online

The Legacy Trail Opens - Sarasota Rails to Trails Project

This weekend Sarasota celebrates the opening of The Legacy Trail - The 12.4-mile-long, 100 ft-wide bike corridor in South Sarasota.

This corridor serves as a link to the rich and wonderful past of the region. In 1911, the railroad corridor was extended through the Venice area at the request of the Palmer family. The railroad line preceded any of our modern highways, and served as the way Southwest Florida was discovered by many of its early inhabitants. Among the more well-known users of the railroad line were the U.S. Army during World War II, the Kentucky Military Institute and the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, which wintered in Venice from 1962-1992. The railroad corridor links with the Venice Train Depot, which was built in 1927 and used for many years until the last passenger left the depot in 1971. Under a separate project, the Venice Train Depot was later purchased and rehabilitated by the county, which reopened it in 2003 to once again serve the area’s transportation needs as the south county passenger transfer facility for Sarasota County Area Transit (SCAT). The depot will serve as one of the trail heads of the recreational trail.

The corridor stretches from just over a mile south of State Road 72 (Clark Road) by Sawyer Loop Road in Sarasota to the southern terminus near Center Road in Venice.

"Make it Your Own" Awards - Cast your vote for the environment

SCOPE is pleased to announce that the Summit for Environmental Action is a Top 20 Finalist for the Make It Your Own Awards™ from the Case Foundation. The Summit was selected from a nationwide pool of nearly 5,000 applications evaluated not only on subject matter, but also on its strength as an example of positive “citizen-centered” change. Each Top 20 Finalist received $10,000, consultation with a Case Foundation Social Investment Manager, and the opportunity to compete for additional funding.

Make It Your Own is an innovative grants program that forgoes the traditional grant application model to embrace a more grassroots, “citizen-centered” approach to seeking funding. After selecting the top 20 ideas from an initial 100 announced this past October, the Case Foundation is now inviting America to get online and vote for the Final Four, each of whom will be awarded an additional $25,000 in grant dollars to help further their community work.

To vote for the Summit for Environmental Action as one of the Make It Your Own Awards Final Four, please click here. You will be asked to select four choices from the finalists.

The Summit for Environmental Action brought together diverse members of the community to create specific solutions addressing local environmental concerns. The Summit idea stemmed from the quality of life indicators in SCOPE’s Community Report Card. Many individuals and organizations came together to plan the Summit, which was held in February. To learn more about the next steps and to get involved contact Kate Irwin at (941)365-8751.

“The Summit was a well-organized, innovative program that should be used as a model for community forums on other issues. Thank you for the opportunity to join this inspiring group of people,” noted one participant. The Make It Your Own Awards helped make possible this idea of creating citizen-inspired action leading to positive environmental change. Please cast your vote at the Case Foundation Website.

Who's feeding you? - Herald Tribune reports on the benefits of local and organic food.

By Linda Brandt
Herald Tribune
March 19th 2008

Most people know their doctor, dentist and pharmacist by name, but few can say the same about the people who grow their food.

Buying locally produced food provides that opportunity and a lot more, according to John Matthews, local food system coordinator for the UF/IFAS Sarasota County Extension.

In interviews with farmers and local food advocates, two things stand out: the shared goal of putting healthy food on local tables and interest in reducing our collective carbon footprint. There is, in one farmer's words, a quiet revolution, as the demand for good fresh food grows, and farmers work together to meet it.

Local and organic

When you consider the carbon footprint, local and organic concepts might seem at odds given that organic foods frequently travel great distances to market. However, a growing number of farms in Southwest Florida are certified organic or use organic methods. And as Matthews points out, small local farmers likely use a minimum of chemicals, not only for the good of the consumer and the environment, but also to keep expenses down and prices competitive.

No product, regardless of how it was shipped, is going to be as fresh as what a local farmer harvested last night or this morning. That is not to disparage supermarket produce. It arrives fresher than ever before, thanks to modern shipping methods. And it may even be from Florida. Look for the "Fresh From Florida" label, part of a marketing program to promote the state's products, including seafood.

Farmers may supplement their own offerings with produce from other farms. If knowing where it comes from is important to you, you can always ask.

Another way of reducing the carbon footprint is to grow some or all of your own food. Peter Burkard, who feeds his family from a 1.5-acre garden farm and has enough produce to share with friends and sell at the Downtown Farmers Market in Sarasota, says he would not mind selling less if it meant people were growing their own produce. And if you are so inclined, the extension services and local farmers are willing to advise.

Downtown lockers for bicycle commuters? - From YourObserver.com

SARASOTA — Sarasota bicycle advocates are a little closer to getting what they’ve been pushing for since 2005 — secure bicycle parking downtown.

That’s not all. The Sarasota Planning Board endorsed proposals Feb. 27 that would include adding more weather protection for bike racks and, if possible, installing 4-foot by 7-foot, $1,850 lockers or locked rooms with bike racks.

The planning board supported the ideas so much they instructed city staff to revise proposed changes to the city zoning code to make this bicycle wish list city standards. “An unexpected victory,” said Mike Lasché, executive director of Bicycle/Pedestrian Advocates, at the conclusion of the meeting.

Lasché and others presented told planning board members that secure bicycle parking was long overdue and necessary to accommodate bicyclists who regularly commute to downtown and to encourage more people to do the same.

They said the current bike parking standards of an inverted “U” rack weren’t secure enough and that theft was too prevalent. Lasché says that while the on-the-street racks are OK for the short-term, more secure parking is needed for those who ride to work and leave their bicycles unattended all day.

Community Bike Rides - SRQ on 2 - Alliance for Responsible Transportation

The A.R.T. (Alliance for Responsible Transportation) is a grassroots, all-volunteer organization that promotes bicycling and walking as viable forms of transportation in Sarasota and the surrounding areas. They accomplish this through education, events, and advocacy. The A.R.T. has also developed Sarasota's first Bicycle Suitability Map, allowing cyclists to see the relative safety and accessibility of bike lanes, sidewalks and multi-use trails in Sarasota County.

Check out the photographs from their "SRQ on 2" rides - a series of 4 weekly bike rides designed to get you comfortable with biking around Sarasota, with each succesive ride covering a longer distance. Ride highlights included a trip over the John Ringling Causeway and out to Lido Key, a ride out to Jessica's Stand and Organic Farm, and the finale ride to Turtle Beach on Siesta Key.

Harvest Cycle - Organic Produce Delivery to Sarasota

Check out an addition to Sarasota's local food scene, Harvest Cycle. Once a week, orders are place for fresh, organic veggies & fruits from Jessica's Organic Farm, and then delivered by bicycle to your doorstep! Too cute!

They stress the importance of local food and sustainability, pointing out that purchasing your produce in this manner has minimal, if no, impact on the environment. No gasoline fueling the transport, no emissions or factories involved in cultivating the food, no funny stuff attached to the organic goodies since most of them just came out of the ground! If you have never had Jessica's Stand, it is a must for Sarasota Organic produce. Forget Whole Foods, it does not get any more fresh or certified organic than this.

If you've tried organic co-ops and they were't your thing, or you didn't like the variety, try this out. You get to pick exactly what you want and choose how much you are going to spend each time.

Local foods combats global warming

"Food miles" refer to the distance a food item travels from the farm to your home. The food miles for items you buy in the grocery store tend to be 27 times higher than the food miles for goods bought from local sources.

In the U.S., the average grocery store’s produce travels nearly 1,500 miles between the farm where it was grown and your refrigerator. About 40% of our fruit is produced overseas and, even though broccoli is likely grown within 20 miles of the average American’s house, the broccoli we buy at the supermarket travels an average 1,800 miles to get there. Notably, 9% of our red meat comes from foreign countries, including locations as far away as Australia and New Zealand.

So how does our food travel from farm field to grocery store? It’s trucked across the country, hauled in freighter ships over oceans, and flown around the world.

A tremendous amount of fossil fuel is used to transport foods such long distances. Combustion of these fuels releases carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, particulate matter and other pollutants into the atmosphere, contributing to global climate change, acid rain, smog and air pollution. Even the refrigeration required to keep your fruits, vegetables, dairy products and meats from spoiling burns up energy.

Food processors also use a large amount of paper and plastic packaging to keep food fresh (or at least looking fresh) for a longer period of time. This packaging eventually becomes waste that is difficult, if not impossible, to reuse or recycle.

Aside from the environmental harm that can result from processing, packaging and transporting long-distance foods, the industrial farms on which these foods are often produced are major sources of air and water pollution. Small, local farms tend to be run by farmers who live on their land and work hard to preserve it. Buying local means you can talk directly to the farmer growing your food and find out what they do and how they do it. Do they grow their food organically? If they're not certified organic, ask them why. Many small farms, even if they haven't taken the certification step, still utilize sustainable or organic farming methods that help protect the air, soil and water.

Click here to read more at Sustainable Table

Gillespie Park - 2nd Annual Founders Day Celebration

Gillespie park celebrated it's present and it's past today. Folks in the downtown Sarasota neighborhood threw a party in the park for the the 2nd annual Gillespie Park Founder's day.

Live bands entertained the crowd. There was lots of food and drink for the kids pony rides, face painting, and bouncy castles. And for adults: Arts and crafts exhibits and dancing.

People got to know their neigbhors, and learned more about the history of their community.

"We're doing the historic home tour ... We're so close to downtown you could walk. We want people to see the beauty of the neighborhood."

Gillespie park is one of Sarasota's most historic neighhorhoods Named after John Hamilton Gillespie, the first mayor of Sarasota.

Schools look closer to home for fresh fruits and veggies

Gas prices are hitting all time highs and food prices are soaring, and that has led Suncoast schools in Sarasota, Manatee and Charlotte counties to look closer to home for fresh fruits and vegetables.

ABC7's Linda Carson shows us how the farm to school program saves money, benefits the environment by cutting down on all those long distance trips, and provides fresher and many say better tasting food for our kids.

Every school day 7400 students in Charlotte, Manatee and Sarasota counties line up in school cafeteria for lunch.

Click here to continue reading article at WWSB ABC 7 - MySuncoast.com