WHEN: April 7, 2020, at noon EST

Join us as we talk with Patrick Coonan about his work creating Goshen’s Community Orchard. Patrick will explain the vision for the project and discuss how a public orchard provides opportunities to foster sustainable food practices in our community. Learn how you can participate in this amazing project that truly reflects the Good of Goshen. Hosted by the City of Goshen’s Environmental Resilience Department.

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NOTICE OF DETERMINATION TO CONSTRUCT AND FINANCE ADDITIONS AND IMPROVEMENTS TO THE GOSHEN SEWAGE WORKS AND THE ADOPTION AND PURPORT OF THE ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING SAME

Property owners, ratepayers and other interested parties in or served or to be served by the sewage works of the City of Goshen, Indiana (“City”), are hereby notified that on February 4, 2020, the Common Council adopted Ordinance No. 5034, thereby determining to construct additions and improvements to the City’s sewage works consisting of the following projects:

• WWTP Improvements Project consisting of upgrades to the existing facilities to improve preliminary treatment, primary treatment, secondary treatment, and sludge handling processes as well as general site improvements.
• Lift Station Improvements consisting of upgrades to 25 of the existing lift stations throughout the City wastewater collection system. Lift station upgrades are categorized as Category 1, Category 2, and Category 3 upgrades.
• Rock Run Sewer Improvements consisting mainly of installation of approximately 1,300 feet of 42-inch sewer generally parallel to the existing Rock Run Sewer, redirecting flow to the new sewer, and abandoning the existing sewer. Portions of the sewer alignment will pass through contaminated soils which have previously been encapsulated and special soil disposal and backfill procedures must be used.

all pursuant to plans and specifications prepared by consulting engineers of the City. (collectively,”Project”). The Project is further set forth on Exhibit A to Ordinance No. 5034.

The total estimated cost of the Project will not exceed $26,200,000. Ordinance No. 5034 further directed that the cost of the Project be financed by the issuance of revenue bonds in an amount not to exceed $26,200,000 which bonds will be payable from net revenues of the sewage works, on a parity with certain outstanding sewage works revenue bonds of the City. The bonds will be sold at a private sale to the Indiana Finance Authority or by competitive bidding, at an interest rate not to exceed 4.0% per annum, and will mature semiannually on January 1 and July 1 over a period ending no later than January 1, 2050. Copies of the plans, specifications, cost estimates and of Ordinance No. 5034 are on file in the office of the Clerk-Treasurer and are available for inspection by any interested parties during regular business hours. Objections to said project and the bonds may be filed in the time and manner provided by the Indiana Code, Title 36, Article 9, Chapter 23.

Dated this 13th day of February, 2020.

/s/ Adam Scharf
Clerk-Treasurer, City of Goshen, Indiana

All details from our previous post on our upcoming environmental luncheons are correct except that we have switched the presenters for each date. Matt Meersman, Director of the Saint Joseph River Basin Commission, will be presenting on Tuesday, February 25th, and Carrie Tauscher, State Community and Urban Forest Coordinator, will be speaking on Tuesday, March 3rd.

The original post can be found here.

The City of Goshen has been awarded a $30,000 Community Resilience Grant through the Arbor Day Foundation with corporate sponsorship from Enterprise Holdings Foundation. The grant funds are to be used for the creation of a community orchard at Abshire Park.

The initial idea for a community orchard was raised by Patrick Coonan, a Goshen resident and urban forager who would like to see Goshen residents take advantage of more of the fruit and nut crops growing around us. He presented the idea of an orchard to the Goshen Park Board in 2018, and the Goshen Park Department began the work to envision space for such a project. “The idea behind a community orchard is to create a gathering space where Goshen residents can discover new types of edible fruit and nuts, learn how to care for these plants, and share in the harvest,” says Coonan.

In the spring of 2019 a grant application was submitted to the Arbor Day Foundation for funding to build Goshen’s first community orchard. In October, the funding was confirmed, and an initial planting event with volunteers from the Goshen community and from Enterprise Holdings Foundation is scheduled at Abshire Park for November 25.

The Abshire Park location was chosen for several reasons, beyond the fact that there is ample space for the orchard. The cabin at the park has a fully functional kitchen which can be used for food processing and demonstration events. The park is also a trail head for the Pumpkinvine Bike Route, and is a major thoroughfare for bike routes throughout Goshen.

Keona Koster, Program Coordinator for the Arbor Day Foundation, said, “Goshen’s community orchard project was highly rated by our teams in components including the resilience story, community engagement, connection to a larger plan, impact, and imagination.” Enterprise Holdings Foundation is the philanthropic arm of Enterprise Holdings, which, through its regional subsidiaries, operates the Enterprise Rent-A-Car, National Car Rental and Alamo Rent A Car brands. In 2018 Enterprise Holdings Foundation provided a $2 million investment for the Arbor Day Foundation’s Urban Tree Initiative, which furthers the Enterprise commitment to support communities now and into the future.

The orchard will include native plants like paw paw and persimmon trees, beech plum bushes and elderberry shrubs, along with some more familiar plants like apples, pears, cherries and blueberries. Next spring, more exotic plants that are suited to our climate in northern Indiana will be added to the mix. Seaberry plants dotted with bright orange berries will form a colorful hedge along the southern entrance of the orchard. Honeyberry, blueberry and currant plants will be incorporated throughout the orchard. Hazelnut shrubs, chestnut trees, Korean pines will add edible nuts to the mix. The plantings will count towards Goshen’s urban tree canopy goal of 45% by 2045, will sequester carbon dioxide, will serve as a point of community interaction, and will provide nutritious foods over time.

The project has brought together many different individuals and groups from the community and beyond, including Memorial High School (Elkhart) students, Horizon Education Alliance, Luke Gascho (a local food forest experiementer), Trees For Goshen, the Community Orchard Project, the Community Resilience Guild, the Goshen Parks and Recreation Department, and many volunteers who will help plant trees.

The sleet and snow falling this morning have created icy conditions on our local roadways, sidewalks, and driveways. As you deal with these icy conditions please consider the impact salt and sand can have on the local environment, both plant life and water quality. Keep in mind these simple tips:

– Pre-treat pavement with a small amount of liquid deicer.

– Remove snow before it becomes ice or use a scraper or metal shovel to remove the ice.

– If the pavement is too cold (less than 15°F) rock salt will not work and alternatives like sand or birdseed for traction or other deicers like magnesium chloride or calcium chloride can be used.

– Use only the amount of salt and sand you need and sweep up any extra.

For more information visit http://bit.ly/winter-sand.

City Street Department crews are working hard to clear the roadways in response to this morning’s weather event. We are asking for the community’s assistance and support in two ways as we continue our work:

1. Use extra caution as many roadways may be more narrow than usual. There are many streets still lined with leaves along the curb line and the plows are unable to clear the snow to the curbs in these areas.
2. Keep storm drains clear. Drains covered with leaves and now snow prevent water from entering and subsequently lead to standing water in the roadways. As temperatures drop again this evening, any standing water is likely to freeze causing additional hazards for tomorrow morning.

Winter weather has definitely arrived and we thank you in advance for helping us and using extra caution while clean up is underway.