The parking lot asphalt was torn up at The Neighborhood United Church of Christ over the summer to make way for a new garden. Courtesy of the Rev. Bill Bliss
The congregation at The Neighborhood United Church of Christ is installing a native garden around its building and invites the wider community to come learn about the project, socialize and share ideas.
From 10 a.m. until noon on Oct. 14, all are welcome to come by the church at 789 Washington St. in Bath. There will be a light stand-up brunch, music, tours of the site, historical information and an archaeological dig. In case of inclement weather, the event will be held a week later on Oct. 21.
The Neighborhood congregation’s Garden Team researched the history of the land on which the garden will be planted and undertook several small archeological digs to determine what lies beneath the asphalt, documenting settlement on the land in recent centuries, and recognizing and honoring the Wabanaki people who originally occupied it. Courtesy of the Rev. Bill Bliss
The garden project is related to a nationwide effort based on the groundbreaking research of ecologist and writer Douglas Tallamy, who envisions a homegrown, connected national park system that connects wild places and slows the alarming disappearance of wild things and the land needed to support them. Tallamy’s book, “Nature’s Best Hope,” was the focus of a study by the congregation, which had long planned to convert the parking lot into a welcoming spot for the wider community where visitors people could relax in a lively patch of nature right in downtown Bath.
The raised beds where organic vegetables are grown for The Neighborhood’s free Tuesday evening restaurant meal will remain on the property. Small native trees, perennial shrubs and ground covers of flowering plants will grace the rest of the space, which will be composed of distinct areas suggesting woodland, wetland and meadow environments. Footpaths will wind through the plantings. Bench seating and a few tables and chairs will provide spots where visitors can sit and enjoy their surroundings. Over time, the hope is that wildlife of many varieties will also be attracted to this welcoming habitat.
Funding to begin the project has come from Bath Housing’s purchase of wooded acres adjacent to the congregation’s former location. This woodland will be protected forever by a conservation easement drafted for the church by the Kennebec Estuary Land Trust. The purchase of the property will enable Bath Housing to build affordable residential housing on the adjacent property.
For more information, contact the Rev. Bill Bliss at neighborhoodpastor798@gmail.com or (207) 751-4572.
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