An Artful School Garden

I am a teacher at James Simons Elementary. We are a Title One, Montessori school on upper King Street. We have very little green space. At recess children get excited if they find a snail shell. We are trying to change that by adding some raised beds and setting up an afterschool garden club. I would also like to incorporate art projects into the garden which would make the garden more unique and give the children a sense of ownership of the space.

I would use the money to buy art supplies, such as clay, underglaze, paint and wood. Our school has a kiln. I wouId buy clay and underglazes for the garden club. We would make garden stones that could be used to identify the plants we are growing. We would also make toad houses from clay. We could keep some at different locations at the school. Students and teachers could use those houses to make predictions about how well toad houses work, as well as which location is best for finding the most toads.

I am also interested in students and their families learning about the plight of the Monarch butterfly. We will make ceramic butterflies that can be hung in the garden or in classrooms. They can be given to families as gifts around November, when the butterflies return to Mexico. This gift can be used to begin a conversation about the Monarch butterfly, and how we can help them. We will also build or buy bird and butterfy houses from wood that can be painted.

All of these things will help bring back an ecosystem to this area. It will also provide students with the opportunity for peaceful reflection and the ability to observe their natural environment.

Surprise Community Art Piece

This piece is inspired by a project I was given in art school. It evoked quite a bit of excitement on campus. If I were mayor, I would involve several community sectors in making this type of art.

A piece of artwork is created or selected (fine art, poster, photo, map), in this case upper peninsula related, and duplicated so it may be cut up into grid squares or rectangles.

Community members, seniors, school students, business owners, etc. each receive one of the pieces, which has been numbered. These community participants also receive a piece of board in the same proportion, but much larger than the grid square provided.

Participants enlarge the design of of the small grid square onto the larger board. They may use any art supply or material, convert it to black and white, work in a style, etc. Participants work at home with their own supplies, or many small events could be orchestrated to provide guidance.

The “main event” is the reconstruction of the original artwork with the larger grid pieces, by number, by the participants. The now larger recreation could be set on the ground and viewed from above, affixed to a wall or building side. This project is fun, interactive and can be accomplished by participants on a wide variety of skill levels.

More housing

For every hotel room on the peninsula an equal number of rental residential properties. So if the city approves a hotel of 300 rooms the developer would have to construct 100 three room apartments…you know the eye for an eye theory only a room for a room!

Public Art

Giving credit to former DC artist and resident Randy Jewart for his program that could work here. Put together a catalog of say 25 pieces of public art mostly suitable for outside installation. Corporations and various businesses would sponsor the installation of a piece of art chosen from the “catalog” for their grounds and or interior space for two years with a small stipend to the artist. The $1000 could be used to fund a directors part time position, cover installation costs. The host of each piece would do required maintenance. Although outstanding public art survives most anything! A three fold brochure with map and installation sites could be handed out to the public and published on various online sites.

Solar System Installation and Art Walk

I would like to create spherical sculptures of the entire Solar System to scale, with installations of all the major planets and their moons. Ideally they will be spaced far apart down a long line to create a peaceful environment where people can walk along to see them all, pondering the mysteries of the universe in the process. This would be a wonderful project for the community as well as all the schools in the area and an opportunity for scientists and teachers to give field trips and lectures about the Solar System and our place in the universe.

Let’s Build a Fashion Incubator

If I were Mayor, I would work with the City Council and Charleston’s Planning Commission to create Charleston’s own Fashion Incubator. The Charleston Fashion Incubator will provide a creative professional environment to nurture promising fashion talent in the Southeast. The goal is to help selected designers grow and sustain their businesses. By offering low-cost design studio space, business mentoring, educational seminars, and networking opportunities the incubator provides a way for participants to reach their full potential and become an integral part of the larger fashion community. The frustration for many independent designers in the apparel industry is how to navigate the complex global supply chain. Let us bring a portion of that supply chain to Charleston. The apparel industry is a multi-billion industry. Charleston has the potential to create its own mini garment district. Let us take a fresh look at the apparel supply chain and generate money that can be funneled into middle class jobs. There is the potential to integrate traditional, artisanal fabrication techniques with technology and possibly incorporate sustainability techniques. The center of operations would consist of work space rentals, product exhibits, contract sewn products manufacturing, equipment demonstrations, meeting space + communication center, and center administration services. Fee based revenue streams might come from product development, small run manufacturing, education + training, contract referral services and supply chain sourcing. Funding for the Charleston Fashion Incubator will be a public-private partnership with assistance of grants. The Charleston Fashion Incubator will develop long lasting relationships with existing suppliers and manufacturers as it is a commodity to maintain positive relationships with the heads of the industry. The Incubator will impact the larger community, not just those directly working in the apparel industry. The incubator will reach out to small machine repair men/women, technologists, lawyers, web designers, accountants, marketing agents and more. We have potential to create a program that strengthens the City of Charleston. Charleston is the perfect location for such a program because this city has a robust art scene, cherishes history and artisanal craftsmanship is a way of life. Fashion tells a story. What will Charleston’s story be?

Smart Roadways

Interesting concept from the Netherlands:
“Smart Highway is an innovative concept for smart roads of tomorrow. A programme of innovation that links a different way of looking at things….”

Follow this link: http://www.smarthighway.net/

Traffic Proposal: Self Driving Car Infastructure

Start planning now for a self driving car / autonomous infrastructure. Development of new roadways will take years and will be costly. Let’s just jump to what is coming and be ahead of the curve.

Wappoo Cut Bridge

Blow up the draw bridge. In its place put in a permanent bridge with bike lanes.

Chicken partner

If I were mayor I would encourage partnerships between local restaurants and individuals or small businesses that are raising chickens for eggs. Each restaurant would save the produce they currently have to throw away (waste of a good resource) and the individuals would agree to a pickup schedule. Free disposal, free chicken food, less waste. Win, win, win!

No More Single-Use Plastic Bags on IOP

Isle of Palms residents love our sea turtles. But plastic bags often end up in the ocean where sea turtles or other sea life ingest them, injuring or killing the animal. We all know that most of those single-use plastic bags don’t get recycled. There are recyclable and biodegradable alternatives readily available. Moving away from plastic bags means a cleaner island and a cleaner ocean, which is, in turn, good for IOP’s tourism and economy. We not only know that the constant stream of consumption of plastic bags is not sustainable, but we also know that keeping our ocean and beaches healthy and beautiful is good for local businesses. Let’s do our part and take action. Let’s break our addiction to single-use plastic bags on Isle of Palms. Visit our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/banthebagIOP, or contact us at: banthebagIOP@gmail.com

Make bus stops handy and comfortable

I like the beautification idea, but all bus stops should have a bench with a roof for shelter from the sun and rain, a map with a bus schedule, and a trash can.

HARNESSING TIDAL POWER

In Ireland they have successfully harnessed the tides for power. Forget about drilling/spilling in our oceans and fracking our lands. The greatest re-newable resource is all around us here. Silent, invisible, predictable, cost-effective and in harmony with the environment. Let’s be the FIRST city in America to MOVE, let’s be business and environmentally progressive and take advantage of our beautiful tidal location. A simple google search can show you the videos and details. Check it out at openhydro.com and at www.youtube.com

Adding an affordable, specialty sandwich shop downtown

Lots of college students have said they would love to have an affordable specialty sandwich shop (such as Panera Bread) downtown for breakfast, lunch, and coffee purposes!

King Street closed to traffic

in between Market and Calhoun Streets, the road is entirely too congested for two lanes of cars, a lane of parked cars, bicycles, and tourists who think they’re in Disney World.