Glenn Herlihy sent a report from the Jefferson Park Food Forest project:

Hello all,

In late 2010 we received a grant from the Department of Neighborhoods to select a Design Team to create a schematic design for a Food Forest in Jefferson Park. The Friends of Jefferson Park Food Forest formed a Selection Committee with eight members for the purpose of interviewing and hiring as much talent as possible. After publicly posting our Request for Qualification (RFQ) we received seven highly qualified Statements of Qualification (SOQ) from design teams in the western Washington area. From there we narrowed it down to four design teams to interview.

This week the selection committee is pleased to announce a final decision to hire Harrison Design Team to facilitate and create a schematic design for the Jefferson Park Food Forest.

We chose this design team for not only their past work experience but their outstanding ability to engage, educate and facilitate the public in a design process. They are fun people with multiple talents for landscape design, permaculture food systems, ethnobotany and the facilitation process.

Briefly the team consists of:

• Margarett Harrison is Principal of Harrison Design. She has over 25 years of experience in planning, designing, and managing landscape projects in both public and private sectors. She has worked for several local design firms including Mithun.
• Jenny Pell is Owner of Permaculture Now. Her experience covers all aspects of permaculture consulting, design, site assessment, managing installations, and budgets. Fluent in Spanish, she has worked and taught around the globe.
• Dave Boehnlein is a Principal at Terra Phoenix Design and is the eduction director at Bullock’s Permaculture Homestead on Orcas Island. Among several of his memberships is the Northwest Ecobuilding Guild and the Northern Nut Growers Association. He lives in Columbia City.
• Kris Pendleton is the Owner and Principal of Sound Urban Edibles, based in Seattle. He has traveled the world studying temperate agriculture landscapes.

Now we need you more than ever.

In late March, date yet to be announced, we will be holding the first of several design parties. They will be festive and educational workshops for the whole family. We plan on offering an ethnically diverse spread of food because food and nutrition is what we are all about. This project offers you the seeds to positive action, the seeds for a future with affordable nutrition for our community. Please join us; everyone is welcome.

Long live your Mother,

Glenn Herlihy
Friends of the Jefferson Park Food Forest