Step right up to get involved in the 2013 Hamline Midway Heartwood Festival!

Registration is now open for exhibitors and sponsors. Businesses, nonprofits, community organizations, and government agencies are invited to fill out a registration form and reserve their space today. Unable to participate as a sponsor or exhibitor? Reserve advertising space in the event program and donate to the Silent Auction. The registration packet (downloadable below) includes:

• A cover letter explaining the benefits of participation,
• An event overview, and
• A festival registration form.

The early bird deadline is Friday, April 5, 2013.

Never been to the festival? See photos of the 2012 event, as well as the 2012 festival program. If you have questions, please contact Kristy at 651-494-7683 or kristy@hamlinemidway.org.

Saturday, June 1, 2013

11:00am-5:00pm: Festival, Newell Park

10:30am: Bike/Walk Parade, Hancock Rec Center

The Hamline Midway Heartwood Festival is a one-day, family-friendly, outdoor event celebrating of community, sustainability, and art. Kicking off with a Bike/Walk Parade, this year's event will feature great entertainment, resource fair, children's activities, and an art & craft fair that festival visitors have enjoyed in years past. Bring your appetites, because local food vendors will serve delicious food at Newell Park!

If you are a Hamline Midway resident, this is your opportunity to vote for Hamline Midway Coalition board candidates. Vote at Newell Park between 11:00am and 5:00pm at the Hamline Midway Coalition booth.

Registration materials are available at www.hamlinemidway.org/heartwood. The Hamline Midway Heartwood Festival is presented by the Community Building Committee of Hamline Midway Coalition. For more information, contact Faith at 651-494-7683 or faith@hamlinemidway.org.

The alley on the Hamline Midway Library’s block will be reconstructed using permeable pavement technology this month thanks to the efforts of HMC’s Community Building Committee and staff, Capitol Region Watershed District, and the City of St. Paul. This project will allow stormwater and its accompanying pollutants to soak into the ground rather than run off into local lakes and rivers and will serve as a pilot project for possible future implementation. 

In the spring of 2011, Hamline Midway Coalition’s Community Building Committee organized a meeting between interested neighbors, the Capitol Region Watershed District, and the City of St. Paul to explore the possibility of “green alleys” in the neighborhood to bring residents together around water quality improvement and alley beautification. Committee members presented an HMC board resolution and testified at the Capitol Region Watershed District's Board of Managers meeting in support of funding for permeable pavement projects later that year.

The City of St. Paul's Water Resource Manager researched existing pervious pavement and its maintenance regimen in conjunction with Public Works and sought a demonstration project area. With the library’s parking lot (located in the alley behind the building) slated for traditional resurfacing this year, the library’s alley became a natural choice.

This year's Green Alley Makeover Day is scheduled for Saturday, September 22, 2012 from 9:00am to 1:00pm, the same day as the Ward 4 Neighborhood Clean Up at the State Fairgrounds. You can host a Green Alley Makeover in your alley with or without help from HMC's staff and Community Building Committee and the Hamline Midway Environmental Group. Download an organizing packet, or pick one up from the HMC office. If you would like assistance with your project, complete the application packet by Wednesday, August 22 at 5:00pm. If you are not receiving volunteer assistance, you may host your event any day and time. Organizers of Green Alley Makeovers will be entered to win a $100 gift certificate to Custom Drapery & Blinds!

What is a Green Alley Makeover? It’s a day to work together with your neighbors to plant, weed, and beautify your alley! Swap plants; haul away brush, compost, and waste, plant natives, ornamentals, or edibles; and top it off with a community potluck. You and your neighbors may have other creative ideas as well, such as traffic calming, artwork, and arbors. See photos and a summary of the 2011 Green Alley Makeover here.

The weather was great for the third annual Hamline Midway Heartwood Festival (formerly Spring Festival) in Newell Park. Aside from the name change, this festival had a new environmental sustainability theme and included a Bike Rodeo, Bike/Walk Parade, Local Business Fair, Green Home Improvement Fair, and Green Living Workshops in addition to the entertainment, food, and art offerings.

See photos of the event here. Thanks to the community for making the Hamline Midway Heartwood Festival a great success!

District Councils Collaborate to Reduce Expenses - Councilmembers Applaud and Encourage Cost-Saving Efforts

In a joint press release, Councilmembers Brendmoen, Bostrom and Stark announced that district councils in Saint Paul would now be able to significantly reduce their individual costs by participating in a group liability insurance policy.

“Since I took office in January, I have been encouraging the City’s district councils seek money-saving efficiencies by combining or sharing “back-of-house” resources,” said Councilmember Amy Brendmoen.  “A group insurance policy is a great step in that direction.”

Starting on May 1, 2012 four district councils; District 2 (Greater East Side) District 10 (Como), District 11 (Hamline/Midway) and District 12 (Saint Anthony Park) will purchase their general liability insurance in a group policy through one provider.  All had previously purchased their policies separately.  By combining their liability to a group policy some of the agencies will save as much as one thousand dollars a year.

“These are tough budget times, and I am glad to see district councils find creative ways to stretch a dollar,” said Councilmember Bostrom.

 “I work in the non-profit community, and I know that there are many administrative requirements that have nothing to do with providing services,” said Brendmoen.  “If we can reduce these burdens and expenses through collaboration, it will make our tax dollars go farther and allow the district councils to focus on their priority--community engagement.”

Saint Paul has seventeen district councils that receive funding from the City’s Citizen Participation grant program.  District councils are responsible for facilitating communication between the City, residents and businesses in their geographic areas.  They are all independent non-profit organizations operated by a community elected board. 

Soon, hundreds of projects led by local artists will bring new life and vibrancy to the Central Corridor Light Rail Line in Saint Paul, thanks to a new partnership between Springboard for the Arts, Twin Cities Local Initiatives Support Corporation and the City of Saint Paul. Called Irrigate, this initiative spurs artist-led creative placemaking spanning the six miles of the Central Corridor Light Rail line in Saint Paul during the years of its construction. This is a unique opportunity that brings together huge infrastructure development, a high concentration of resident artists on both ends of the corridor, a diverse ethnic and cultural mix among the neighborhoods, and a city with a strong track record of artist community engagement. By mobilizing artists to engage in their community, Irrigate will change the landscape of the Central Corridor with color, art, surprise, creativity and fun.

Placemaking is the act of people coming together to change overlooked and undervalued public and shared spaces into welcoming places where community gathers, supports one another, and thrives. Places can be animated and enhanced by elements that encourage human interaction – from temporary activities such as performances and chalked poetry to permanent installations such as landscaping and unique art.

How to Get Involved

Every year in January, the City of Saint Paul and the City's 17 District Councils celebrate the contributions of outstanding neighborhood volunteers. Each District Council can name up to 3 groups or individuals for recognition at the City's "Neighborhood Honor Roll" event, which was held on January 20. This year's honorees from Hamline Midway are Pat Vanreese, Kathy Oaks, and the Hamline Midway History Corps.

• Pat Vanreese. We all appreciate having a helpful neighbor - one who will look after our pets or lend us a tool or help with a home improvement project - and Pat is that neighbor. Even more so, we all appreciate having a helpful neighbor in the winter - one who will help remove our ice dams or take out the snow blower and clear the sidewalk and driveways on the block. According to those who live near him, Pat is that neighbor, too.
• Kathy Oaks. For the past several years, Kathy has hosted and promoted the Hamline Midway Barter Market - a time and place for local residents to swap extra produce, trade home-made goods, exchange used items, or just have a good conversation. Through her generous investment of time and energy, Kathy has advanced the twin ethics of neighborliness and stewardship of our planet.
• Hamline Midway History Corps. Since 2005, the Hamline Midway History Corps has persistently pursued its mission to collect, share, and preserve the history of the Hamline Midway neighborhood. From a popular speaker series to monthly meet-ups to archival projects to advocacy for the preservation of the historic Hamline Park Building, the Hamline Midway History Corp has consistently reminded the neighborhood that the future of a community is always firmly rooted in its past.

HMC salutes Hamline Midway's 2012 Neighborhood Honor Roll honorees!

Step right up to get involved in the 2012 Hamline Midway Heartwood Festival!

Registration is now open for exhibitors and sponsors. Businesses, nonprofits, community organizations, and government agencies are invited to fill out a registration form and reserve their space today. Unable to participate as a sponsor or exhibitor? Reserve advertising space in the event program and donate to the Silent Auction. The registration packet (downloadable below) includes:

• A cover letter explaining the benefits of participation,
• An event overview detailing different aspects of the festival, and
• A festival registration form.

If you have questions, please contact Faith at 651-494-7683 or faith@hamlinemidway.org.

*Note: These materials are not intended for Art & Craft Fair submissions. Please find information here. 

Learn how you can help build a strong local food system in our community at the Midway Local Food Resource Hub Kick-Off on Wednesday, January 25 at 7:00pm at the Hamline Midway Library (1558 W. Minnehaha). Together with your neighbors, you can gain access to low-cost seeds and plants, gardening workshops, a tool-lending library, newly-established community gardens, and more to expand gardening and healthy food access in our community.

Come learn about local food opportunities in the neighborhood and join the discussion to build on these efforts. Light refreshments and children's activities will be provided.

Local food resource hubs are locally-based partnerships of individuals, organizations, businesses, and Gardening Matters to ensure healthy food access for all. Three local food resource hubs were established in Minneapolis in 2011. Learn more about hubs here and here.

This kick-off event is a collaboration between Hamline Midway Coalition's Local Foods Working Group, Gardening Matters, and the Hamline Midway Environmental Group. More collaboration is needed to make this a stronger effort. If you are interested in organizational collaboration or tabling at this event, contact Faith Krogstad at faith@hamlinemidway.org or 651-494-7683.