By: Kelsey Coats
The Sierra Blanca Community Coalition has begun planning for their Community PSE Start Up Projects. Last week the coalition invited the WoW-E team to do a Walkability and Park Workshop and to do site visits for their nutrition projects.
On Monday, November 4, the Sierra Blanca Community Coalition hosted the Walkability and Park Workshop at Hudspeth County Agrilife Extension. Representatives from Hudspeth County, Ranch on the Rock, and Hudspeth County Agrilife Extension and key coalition members were in attendance. The WoW-E team facilitated the workshop and went on the walking audit conducted by coalition members. The walking audit covered Sierra Blanca Public Park and examined the area immediately surrounding the park. After the walking audit the coalition discussed what could be improved to make the area more walkable. They identified areas where crosswalks would be beneficial. The coalition would like to improve walkability to the park as well as other everyday destinations. The coalition also discussed creating and naming walking routes in and around the park.
The coalition’s next steps are to engage the community about walkability. The coalition plans to pilot test proposed crosswalks with pop ups in late winter early spring. In the meantime, the coalition plans to activate the park to engage community members to find out when and where people walk and what would get them walking more.
On Tuesday, November 5, coalition members gave the WoW-E team of two sites where they are building greenhouses. The first site use to have a fully functioning greenhouse that utilized aquaponics for growing fresh produce. The greenhouse has been unusable for the past year and a half due to damage by feral hogs. The WoW-E project inspired community members to start rebuilding the greenhouse. The second site visited is another area community members are going to build a greenhouse. Upon completion of the greenhouses, the coalition has requested business planning for a farmer’s market. The coalition has connections with local convenience stores who would like to sell more fresh produce. The coalition and convenience are discussing working with the WoW-E team on healthy food displays.
The WoW-E team enjoyed learning more about Sierra Blanca’s park and hearing community members ideas to make it more walkable as well as the coalition’s ideas for where and how to sell the produce grown at the greenhouses. The team looks forward to watching these projects continue to grow.