Civic Places Panel

Category : Upper Peninsula Initiative

Dec, 2016

By Katherine Richards

Civic Places Panel

The topic of the evening was civic places on the peninsula. Civic places are areas where the public can gather as a community. They bring together
people of all area codes, ages and cultural backgrou
nds — tonight, we celebrated that.

Food and beverages were donated by 5church of Charleston.

The panel discussion topic, in conjunction with the opportunity to tour the newly revitalized 17th century trolley barn, now American College of Building Arts, dew in quite a crowd.

The panel featured some of the peninsula’s most creative thinkers, dedicated to creating ideal civic places and spaces for residents on the coast.

Jason Kronsberg, Cathryn Zommer, Michael Smith, Bill Eubanks, Seamon Whiteside, Ted Landsmark, and Julie Hensley were tonight’s panelists.

Each panelist has their own unique story, and offers something new and innovative to the peninsula.

Featured Panelists:

Jason Kronsberg is a landscape architect and the Director of Parks for the City of Charleston. The Department of Parks is responsible for the design, construction, maintenance, and repairs of the city’s new and existing parks, playgrounds, green spaces, facilities, and buildings

Fun fact: The City currently owns and is responsible for 120 parks which consist of approximately 1,809 acres of parks and open space.

Julie Hensley is the Director of Planning and Resource Management of the Charleston County Park & Recreation Commission, South Carolina. Julie is responsible for all aspects of park master planning, long-range planning, land acquisition, facility design and land resource management.

Theodore “Ted” Carlisle Landsmark is President Emeritus of Boston Architectural College (BAC) where he served from 1997 to 2014 and is currently the Vice President of Academic Affairs at the American College of the Building Arts. Ted is also a Board member of the Boston Planning and Redevelopment Agency.

Michael Smith is the Executive Director of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra. Michael’s passion is to advance the art form of orchestral music to be a sustainable and integral part of modern society by holding onto traditions while blending in new traditions that reflect the times we live in. Michael was principal trumpet of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra (CSO) from 2009 to 2013. He began his tenure with the CSO in 2006 as second trumpet.

Bill Eubanks is the Creative Director at Seamon Whiteside (SW+) and is a founding member of the urban edge studio. His practice focuses on urban design and the charrette process. He became a Fellow of the ASLA in 2007 and a LEED Accredited Professional in 2009. Bill is President of the Ashley Bridge District Board, serves on the 10,000 Trees Committee, is on the board of the East Cooper Land Trust, and is a member of the ASLA Board of Trustees.
Meet Cathryn Zommer, Executive Director of Enough Pie. Enough Pie is a nonprofit that uses creativity to connect and empower our community in Charleston Upper Peninsula. Through artistic collaborations, creative placemaking, dynamic partnerships and civic engagement, EnoughPie stimulates relationships through creativity by focusing on the process of collaborative creation.

This UPI gathering was sponsored by Bryan McElveen of Charleston EcoRelator.

The Upper Peninsula Initiative is a public-private planning effort managed by the City of Charleston and the backbone organization, The Sustainability Institute.

For more information, please visit CharlestonUp.com or email info@charlestonUP.com.

Photos by Stan Foxworthy Foxworthy Studios.

Oct, 2016

By Katherine Richards

Development Updates

October’s UPI gathering focused on development updates on the peninsula.

Guests snacked on mini selections from Lewis Barbecue, the hosts of yesterday evening’s gathering.

After horderves, Stephen Zoukis, Michael Wooddy and LeGrand Elebash stole the stage.

Zoukis and Wooddy work with Raven Cliff Company, an organization focused on redeveloping industrial property on the peninsula. Stephen Zoukis is the CEO of the company, and enjoys utilizing the revitalized spaces for offices and restaurants.

Raven Cliff Company is best known for the completion of “Half Mile North”, a growing tech corridor on the peninsula.

Next up, LeGrand Elebash — project executive of Lorelei. Lorelei is a live, play, work community situated on Laurel Island. Its distinctive Charleston-esque charm is reminiscent of the neighborhood atmosphere peninsula residents have grown to love.

After each presentation, the floor was open for questions and suggestions.
Amidst a loud train horn, one resident asked if there was something that could be done about the noise level. Another chimed in, reminding the audience of the beauty of the city we live in.

“Is there anyway we can build upon the Charlestonian experience, and make it more unique? More community oriented?”

Zoukis answered and urged residents in attendance to get involved, and to help facilitate dialogue between residents, and the people working to perfect their living experience.

This UPI gathering event was sponsored by Paul & Wink Banker, with Holy City Housing.

The Upper Peninsula Initiative is a public-private planning effort managed by the City of Charleston and the backbone organization, The Sustainability Institute.

For more information, please visit CharlestonUp.com or email info@charlestonUP.com.

Photos by Stan Foxworthy Foxworthy Studios.

Aug, 2016

By Katherine Richards

Equitable Development

Yesterday evening’s Upper Peninsula Initiative gathering focused on equitable development, a major focus in The Sustainability Institute’s, UPI’s parent organization, goal for the Upper Peninsula, as they work towards a more sustainable way of living.

Speakers included representatives
from Neighborhood House, The American Red Cross, and The Sustainability Institute.

Deborah LaRoche, the director of Neighborhood House shared the services and opportunities the agency has been able to bring to the Upper Peninsula through their admirable charitable work.

The local American Red Cross branch came and talked about their free program, teaching residents to install smoke detectors in vulnerable homes around the neighborhood.

The Sustainability Institute also spoke about their revolutionary weatherization techniques used to reduce energy bills and environmental footprints with the Energy Conservation Corps. The program is designed to teach and train the next generation of industry leaders.

Guests enjoyed fried chicken, mac & cheese, cornbread and sweet tea from Martha Lou’s Kitchen, a New York Times acclaimed soul food restaurant located in the Charleston Upper Peninsula.

The Upper Peninsula Initiative is a public-private planning effort managed by the City of Charleston and the backbone organization, The Sustainability Institute.

For more information, please visit CharlestonUp.com or email info@charlestonUP.com.

Photos by Stan Foxworthy Foxworthy Studios.

Special thanks to our sponsor, Spectrum
Paint, hosts, The Neighborhood House, and our awesome speakers and volunteers. We couldn’t do what we do without you!

Charleston UP, sustainability, UPI

Jul, 2016

By Katherine Richards

Materials

Tuesday evening’s Upper Peninsula Initiative gathering focused on materials, and local organizations that utilize them as sustainable resources. Perrin Woodworking hosted the event.

Dan and Katy Perrin, spoke about their local business, located in the Upper Peninsula. Their business, Perrin Woodworking, specializes in one-of-a-kind furniture pieces, personalized and designed using the finest materials Dan and Katy can get their hands on.

Drew Harrison, representing the Green Heart Project is no stranger to the UPI. He spoke at a gathering back in March, when he talked about the organization’s devotion to urban agriculture.

Last night, Harrison urged attendees to be mindful of wasteful disposal habits, and to instead, urge their communities to repurpose food and material waste.

Residents were able to get hands on experience with garden work, and learned how to construct raised beds — a technique frequently utilized by Green Heart.

Local materials were donated to help construct the garden raised beds thanks to

Carolina Lumber Sourcing, which representative Bill Watt shared a bit of his personal story, having a rich background in architectural restoration.

CLS takes great pride in being a premiere service provider for affordable, quality speciality lumber and flooring.

All Seasons Mulch is Charleston’s largest outdoor warehouse, with a wide selection of top quality mulch, gravel and other landscape terrain. The company also donated their resources, talents and time to the demonstration.

The audience was enthused to learn about the organization, their convenient retail location and revolutionary Bark Blower, designed to prevent erosion and conserve water.

Our garden inspired hors d’oeuvre were generously made and donated by Cru Catering, Charleston’s
#1 caterer for 16 years in a row, and a local UP business!

A lovely summer wheat beer was donated thank to our local UP brewery, Revelry Brewing. Special thanks to our sponsor, South State Bank, our gracious hosts, Dan and Katy Perrin and our speakers and volunteers. We couldn’t do what we do without you!

The Upper Peninsula Initiative is a public-private planning effort managed by the City of Charleston and the backbone organization, The Sustainability Institute.

For more information, please visit CharlestonUp.com or email info@charlestonUP.com.

Photos by Stan Foxworthy Foxworthy Studios.

Jun, 2016

By Katherine Richards

CommUNITY

Last night was perhaps the craziest one on the Upper Peninsula events yet. St. Julian Devine Community Center hosted a fun, family-friendly UPI gathering focused on CommUNITY, a message resonating throughout Charleston following the attack on Emmanuel AME Church in 2015.

The UPI event was in partnership with Charleston Promise Neighborhood,a local non-profit that has a mission to ensure all Charlestonians are engaged in their community, and to ensure every child is on track to graduate high school with the necessary abilities. CPN is located in the Upper Peninsula on upper Meeting Street.

The focus for the night was to bring together like-minded individuals on the Upper Peninsula, committed to uniting together in the face of tragedy. A message of unity is essential to the family oriented atmosphere Charleston is famous for.

Speakers of the night included Samantha Sammis, Sherrie Snipes-William, and Jay Bell.

Samantha Sammis is the Executive Director of Loving America Street, a group committed to demonstrating a love of Christ through community service. Loving America Street operates Laundry Matters, the only remaining laundry facilitator on the East Side.

Sherrie Snipes-William is the Executive Office of Charleston Promise Neighborhood, a long time ally of CharlestonUP. Charleston Promise Neighborhood’s mission is to ensure every child in the neighborhood has the supports they need to thrive.

The Sustainability Institute’s Energy Conservation Corps representative Jay Bell was also in attendance, updating residents on the status of the corps members and explaining SI’s ECC Program, how it benefits at ri
sk youth and veterans, and how the community benefits from their work.

A jump castle, arts and crafts with Enough Pie, basketball and snow cones kept the little future neighborhood leaders entertained.

A delicious variety of grilled chicken, ribs, burgers and hot dogs were available for everyone to enjoy. A local church helped to coordinate the selections, and had one of their members, a UP resident, prepare the meal.
This CommUNITY gathering was sponsored by BoomTown. A special thanks to Nina Magnesson, who does an awesome job representing the interests of this local online real estate company

Attendees were encouraged to participate in a survey to offer ideas for future projects and gatherings. The results are as follows.

The Upper Peninsula Initiative is a public-private planning effort managed by the City of Charleston and the backbone organization, The Sustainability Institute.

For more information, please visit CharlestonUp.com or email info@charlestonUP.com.

Photos by Stan Foxworthy Foxworthy Studios.

*UPI is a community centered, neighborhood oriented planning initiative, created with the needs of the areas it serves in mind. The results of any survey conducted do not use empirical methods of data collection, and are not necessarily reflective of the community at large.

Charleston UP, sustainability, UPI

1 2 3