permaculture

[Greg <FarmerGreg@UrbanFarm.org>]

Larry,

Does this mean that this is not an appropriate post for this list? 
Please tell me if it is so I don't do it again.

Thanks

Greg


> Greg wrote:
>
> >  Hey all,
> >
> >  I just wanted to let you know there is a controversy growing in
> >  GIlbert that might be of interest to you.  Our friend Amy Belanger
> >  has graciously put together this document.  If you feel moved write a
> >  letter or make a phone call.  Lets see how we can turn this into a
> >  learning moment for all involved.
> >
> >  Greg
>
> >  If you want to be a true activist, watch the agenda of the Town
> >  Council meetings online and if the ordinance change appears on the
> >  agenda, show up prepared to comment. Be aware that, in order to
> >  comment at the public hearing in Gilbert, you must fill out a comment
> >  form indicating the item number on which you wish to be heard. The
> >  comment form will be available at the hearing. The Town Council
> >  agendas (with item numbers) can be viewed at the following url:
> >
> > <http://www.ci.gilbert.az.us/boards/agncouncil.cfm>http://www.ci.gilbert.az.us/boards/agncouncil.cfm.
> >
> >  To follow this issue, sign up for the permaculture listserve
> >  http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PhxPermaculture/
> >
> >
> >  Amy J. Belanger
> >  602-616-9744
>
> <><><>
>
> Here is the text of these news articles:
>
>
> <http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=48601>
>
> Gilbert News
> Daniel Lee Thompson of Gilbert sits in front of his parents' house,
> where he has made the front yard into a vegetable garden. Some neighbors
> worry that the foliage will affect their homes' values.
> Toru Kawana Tribune
> Gilbert's Garden of Eatin' triggers dispute
> By Beth Lucas, Tribune
> September 21, 2005
> Daniel Lee Thompson's Thanksgiving corn is preparing to ripen - in his
> front yard. Underneath, lettuce for his family's salad grows. The yard
> is filled with hills and creekbeds, and a variety of organic vegetables
> and fruits.
> View garden slideshow.
> Related Links
> Gilbert
> But what the Gilbert resident considers edible landscape has neighbors
> concerned about real estate values and appearance, and that has captured
> the attention of Town Councilman Dave Crozier.
>
> Crozier wants to get rid of Thompson's garden, which he says stands out
> in an otherwise well-kept neighborhood.
>
> He asked the town's attorneys for an opinion on whether an old ordinance
> that allowed Thompson to grow his plants at will applies to a suburban
> residence. The ordinance's intent was to allow farmers to plant crops,
> he claims.
>
> If the attorney's opinion doesn't allow the town to rid the yard of what
> he considers overgrowth, Crozier said he will push for change to the
> current ordinance.
>
> "You've got to draw a line between unkempt decorative landscaping versus
> somebody legitimately trying to grow a farm in their front yard,"
> Crozier said. "The guy is growing what appears to be a science
> experiment in his front yard. When you first pull up to it, it's just
> like a jungle gone wild."
>
> The issue came to light after a neighbor, Sandra Terry, wrote to the
> town, threatening to move away. She declined to comment on the issue.
>
> Senior code compliance officer Steve Wallace said he receives numerous
> complaints about the property on West Rawhide Avenue southeast of Elliot
> and Cooper roads, and recently asked Thompson to pull weeds that had
> grown taller than allowed by ordinance. However, based on how the town
> now interprets its ordinance, there have been no other violations, he said.
>
> The home is not part of a homeowner's association.
>
> Thompson is unflinching in his determination to grow what he said he
> plans to document in an independent film as an example of selfsufficient
> healthy living.
>
> "Why they want to deprive themselves and not accept the bounty of God is
> beyond me," Thompson said. "They would allow the poisoning and death of
> everything in my garden - which would lead to the death of my parents."
>
> He said he first began the garden three years ago to improve his
> parents' health by providing more oxygen and cooler temperatures, as
> well as the fresh food. His mother and step-father are owners of the home.
>
> Thompson's mother, Ann Carlisle, said the healthy food, along with
> supplements allows her at the age of 80 to avoid prescription drugs. She
> said growing fruits, vegetables and flowers should be more accepted and
> even appreciated in such a dry climate.
>
> "People are too busy being too busy being too busy," she said. "It's
> crazy. They'd rather be watching sports on TV. How many kids even know
> how grass grows?"
>
> Thompson has prepared a letter, after his last visit from a code
> enforcer, that he plans to send to Gilbert Mayor Steve Berman, Sen. John
> McCain, RAriz., and Gov. Janet Napolitano, asking that his yard be
> saved, and urging more planting statewide to restore water resources and
> oxygen in the state. He invited them to view his home.
>
> "Come back in three weeks. You're going to be walking through a jungle,"
> Thompson said Monday as he watered and played music for his backyard.
> Contact Beth Lucas by email, or phone (480) 898-6373
>
>
> <http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/mesa/articles/1005gr-wildgardenZ11.html>
>
> Homegrown garden leaves neighbors cold
>
> Cary Aspinwall
> The Arizona Republic
> Oct. 5, 2005 12:00 AM
>
> Among the xeriscape, golf greens, patios and swimming pools of Gilbert,
> Daniel Lee Thompson has created his own little ecosystem.
>
> Thompson's front yard is shaded by massive leaves of romaine lettuce,
> cornstalks, Swiss chard and towering turnip greens.
>
> He will chomp on a turnip blossom as he shows the marigolds and sweet
> William blossoms he plants among the veggies to attract the right kinds
> of insects, the ones to eat the bad bugs. No pesticides are used in this
> garden.
> advertisement
>
>
> "This is my breakfast," he said, winking as he pulls more greens from
> the ground.
>
> Thompson and the owners of the house at 602 W. Rawhide Ave. in Gilbert,
> his mother and stepfather, Ann and Richard Carlisle, say they are proud
> and enthusiastic about their homegrown organic produce. They say it's
> the key to their health and longevity, the reason they don't need any
> medications.
>
> Some of their neighbors are less-than-thrilled, however, and have
> complained to Gilbert officials. One Town Council member, Dave Crozier,
> asked the town attorney to rule whether Thompson's garden is a code
> violation. If that fails, Crozier has talked about changing the
> ordinance that allows it.
>
> "The question always comes down to where do you draw the line?" Crozier
> said. "This is over the line. I don't blame (the neighbor) for
> complaining - I would have, too."
>
> The home is in Madera Parc, one of Gilbert's rare neighborhoods without
> a homeowners association governing what the family can plant in its own
> yard.
>
> As long as the weeds are trimmed, the town can't tell Thompson to yank
> the Crenshaw melons from his front yard because the neighbors think it
> looks untidy, code compliance officers say.
>
> "We get complaints from time to time," said Steve Wallace, Gilbert's
> senior code compliance officer. "It's a residential zoned area, and in
> those areas folks are allowed to grow crops for themselves."
>
> Some who drive by have complained that the front yard looks like a
> jungle. They should see the back yard. It's a maze of kumquats,
> grapevines, carrots, herbs and peach trees.
>
> It's all part of a theory to which Thompson, 57, subscribes: Man is
> responsible for the current drought, fire, flood cycle that has hit the
> United States. Arizona was all lush vegetation and forests at one time,
> he says.
>
> He is an advocate of permaculture and sustainable farming methods,
> trying to restore the environment that has been destroyed by man.
>
> "For me, it's the whole idea of knowing the food is safe, healthy and
> here for my family to eat," he said.
>
> His 80-year-old mother doesn't have the shelf full of medications that
> many of her peers have to take.
>
> "It all boils down to nutrition," Carlisle said. "What you're buying in
> the grocery store has so little nutrition, and it's all contaminated
> with pesticides."
>
>
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***ATTENTION***  Please note my new email address.  FarmerGreg@UrbanFarm.org

The Urban Farm
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Greg Peterson
http://www.urbanfarm.org
602/565-7045