Latest news with #communityeffort
BBC News
2 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Wiltshire's 'most depressing' park given £50k makeover
A park described as the most "depressing" play area in Wiltshire has been given a makeover after a five-year community park in The Close, Redlynch, is estimated to have been built in the 1970s and had fallen into a state of disrepair."I've been all over the county and frankly I hadn't seen one more dilapidated or depressing," said Wiltshire councillor Zoe Clewer. "This really took the biscuit by a country mile."Mrs Clewer began a campaign to replace the park in 2020 and it has now reopened after having £50,000 spent on it. Wiltshire Council funded the project as part of a county-wide park improvement programme after Redlynch Parish Council agreed to take over responsibility for its work included installing a new climbing frame, slide, swings and monkey bars. Mrs Clewer said how little had been done at the park became apparent when she spoke to one young girl in The Close."She showed me graffiti that had been done by her mum years and years ago, clearly a generation ago - and what that told me was this place had not had a lick of paint in 20 years," Mrs Clewer added: "The household incomes here [in The Close, Redlynch], are a good deal lower than just a couple of streets away."This area has been neglected a little bit. We need to look after these areas and we need to include people." The running of the park has now been handed to the parish Ian Harvey said the area had been a hotspot for anti-social behaviour."It didn't help with the play area how it was," he said. "At least people here now see that both the parish council and Wiltshire Council care about them and are willing to spend some money on trying to do something." Clarissa Cranmer is part of the parish council and works at the local primary described the project as a "huge community effort", adding children said it was "not fair" that the park was in such poor state. Children were asked what they wanted in the park, and Ms Cranmer said they requested monkey bars and mini trampoline. The work was done as part of a £603,000 project to upgrade play areas in Wiltshire if parish councils agree to take them far nine play areas have been upgraded with nine more projects in progress. Councillor Martin Smith, Wiltshire Council's cabinet member for street scenes, said: "These improvements will make a lasting difference in rural communities, enabling more children to stay active and have fun."We look forward to continuing to support communities in creating vibrant, inclusive spaces for play and recreation."
CTV News
24-07-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Anti-Hunger Coalition Timmins plans to buy a hydroponic farm
Anti-Hunger Coalition Timmins says it is in the process of taking over ownership of a hydroponic farm. Anti-Hunger Coalition Timmins (ACT) is in the process of taking over ownership of a hydroponic farm. Although the plan is in an early stage, the not-for-profit organization is working with a consulting company to ensure a successful outcome. Hunger farm2 Anti-Hunger Coalition Timmins plans to eventually purchase Borealis Fresh Farms. (Lydia Chubak/CTV News Northern Ontario) The organization hosted a drop-in session Tuesday for anyone who wanted to learn more about this new development. For the past couple of years, the group has been working and learning from Marc Rodrigue, owner of Borealis Fresh Farms. ACT is working with the Community Company, a consulting firm out of Kitchener, to come up with a plan to buy the farm. Officials said it's a multi-year project and the vision is ambitious. 'We're hoping to create some part-time jobs out of it so that we can interact with maybe some more vulnerable community members to be able to work in the farms, earn a little bit of income and be around the beautiful plants and, you know, be around a little bit better mental health as they're transitioning into possibly full-time work somewhere,' said Kelsey MacDonnell, executive director of Anti-Hunger Coalition Timmins. 'This is a community-led effort and people with expertise in this space people with time, with energy,' added Justin Chan, executive director of the Community Company. Hunger farming Anti-Hunger Coalition Timmins plans to eventually purchase Borealis Fresh Farms. (Lydia Chubak/CTV News Northern Ontario) 'We really want to build this together. You know, this is Step 1 in, really, a multi-year journey to building a hydroponic farm that can support our community. So we're really looking forward to having conversations with people who are excited about this.' So far, ACT has purchased some growing equipment within Borealis Fresh Farms and is already producing basil and lettuce that it's selling at its public markets. 'Our markets are open to everybody,' said MacDonnell. 'Same with our good food boxes. They're open for anybody to purchase. We hope through community support of anybody in the community, we can then offer some subsidized help for people who are lower income. But if we don't have other people coming to the market to help support the market, then we're not able to do that sort of initiative for more lower-income individuals.' Officials said the farm project is an opportunity for people to encourage and promote food security in the community by ensuring everyone has access to affordable health food.
CTV News
30-06-2025
- CTV News
Community rallies to find stolen bike
St. Thomas residents worked together to find former MP Karen Vecchio's stolen bike. CTV London's Brent Lale reports.
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Reading owner calls for 'community effort' and addresses Bearwood protests
New Reading owner Rob Couhig is looking forward to meeting supporters of the club, wanting the rejuvenation of the club to be a 'community effort.' The former Wycombe Wanderers chief officially took over the club on Wednesday, originally due to complete a deal in August 2024. Enduring a rocky relationship with Royals fans in the past two years, Couhig came in for criticism due to his involvement in Wycombe's attempted purchase of Reading's Bearwood training ground. Supporters protested outside Adams Park and the deal was quickly scuppered, but words were exchanged on social media and via podcasts. Never giving up, never giving in 🔵⚪️#readingfc #SellBeforeWeDai — Sell Before We Dai (@SellBeforeWeDai) March 15, 2024 "I didn't understand it, I really didn't," Couhig said of the Bearwood saga. "I thought anybody who thought it served a purpose doesn't understand business, but that's okay. They felt better and it went the way they wanted it to go. I don't know whether Mikhail [Lomtadze] would have bought it or not were it for that even, but it's in the past. "What it does do is show that there's a strong commitment of people to the club and what I would hope is that in this newfound day of happiness, they would use that same level of intensity to try and help the club by selling tickets, selling sponsorships, helping us move forward and the like." Happy to speak with supporters and take pictures upon his visits to Berkshire in the past year, fans were overjoyed to see Dai Yongge end his eight-year association with the club and usher in the Couhig Era. This excitement is certainly a two-way street. "I'm excited," Couhig said. "I've asked to see how we can, in effect, do a Zoom with whatever fans want to. My preference would be all the social lawyers who came out of the woodwork under anonymous names and to have them actually get online and ask me any question they want. Again, I'm not sure that I can satisfy all of them but what I know is that if they listen with an open mind, they'll understand what our goal is, how we expect to achieve it, and they'll be reasonably satisfied with the answer. "There's going to be a portion of people, rightly so say, well, that's all great to say it, let me see how it actually works. What I would hope that those people wouldn't do is say, let's see how it works and I'm not going to the game until I see how it works. "We need this to be a community effort. That last game was spectacular, the fans coming together and really having a sense of joy. My reason for being involved in sport, as an owner, we love the joy that comes from people."
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Annual Kalamazoo River cleanup held on Saturday
KALAMAZOO, Mich. (WOOD) — A major community effort on Saturday brought hundreds of volunteers to the Kalamazoo River. Not just to clean it up, but to reconnect with it. Armed with gloves and trash bags, volunteers spent hours collecting debris from the water and riverbanks. Among the items pulled from the river were scrap metal, discarded needles and even a large stuffed animal. The annual event is part of a growing initiative to restore the Kalamazoo River and reestablish it as a shared public resource. It was organized by the Kalamazoo River Watershed Council, the Rotary Club of Kalamazoo, LINK Kalamazoo, and several local environmental groups. 'It's important because the river is a critical quality of life asset,' said Doug McLaughlin, executive director of the Kalamazoo River Watershed Council. 'It's important for our community. It's important for all of the communities up and down the river and for the region.' The event also aimed to highlight decades of environmental recovery along the river. Once heavily polluted, the Kalamazoo River has seen significant improvement in water quality and habitat restoration in recent years, though advocates say there is still a lot more work to be done. 'We're out here trying to clean up the environment, help the ecosystem and we are looking to activate the river for this community,' said Kalamazoo resident Andrew Hopson, who volunteered Saturday morning. Garrett Bruns, another participant, said events like this demonstrate the community's investment in creating a more livable city. 'I love living in a city where people can come together with a common goal and really help something that benefits us all,' Bruns said. Information on how to get involved is available at Last year's cleanup brought out about 300 people and removed more than 8,000 pounds of debris. This year's final total is still being calculated. Organizers say they're already planning next year's event and hope to expand it further. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
