Pingelly Community Garden committee keen to break new ground on Brown Street

Pingelly will soon see the establishment of a community garden with the newly formed Pingelly Community Garden committee having been successful in obtaining a peppercorn lease from the Shire of Pingelly for the old Pingelly Tennis Club. Committee members Emily Lewis, Felicity Hezelwood, vice-chair Lisa Pitman and chair Ed Taylor met at the site on September 20 to share their vision for the future. “It’s definitely going ahead,” Ms Pitman said. “We’ve got a committee together, we’re applying for incorporation and we’ve got a lease we’re about to sign with the Shire. “Now we’re going to start fundraising.” The former tennis club on Brown Street beside the Pingelly Health Centre features a large undeveloped area of land and an old club room that will become the group’s new home. “We’ve just got to get the services reconnected,” Mr Taylor said. “It’s very nice, it’s got timber floors and it’s very neatly laid out, it’s got a kitchen and a storeroom on one end and toilets on the other and it’s full glass north and south with a big patio on the back. “There’s a fair bit of work that we’ll have to do outside, we’ll have raised beds at different heights to cater for peoples different abilities — it’s one thing getting down but it can be another getting back up.” Before the group obtained the lease, the building was set to be demolished. The Shire of Pingelly will assist PCG to get services reconnected and level the land news of the garden is generating a lot of community interest. Ms Pitman said the positive response stems from the idea for the garden originating from the community. “We ran some workshops earlier this year and people were able to say what they did like or didn’t like and what they wanted to see in town the future,” she said. “Out of 42 participants 38 wanted a community garden, so it was pretty evident that it was going to work.” The first fundraising project on the agenda is the construction of a float to enter in the Pingelly Flowers Arts and Music Festival Float Parade on October 14 which features a first prize of $500 for the best dressed vehicle. “Hopefully we can get enough people together to put together a float,” Ms Pitman said. “We’ll also have a market stall with plants and crafts and goodies for the kids.” Anyone wishing to assist the group with the float is encouraged to get in touch by sending an email to pingellycommunitygarden@gmail.com.