LA MESA UNVEILS NEW LANDSCAPING PLAN

Printer-friendly versionPrinter-friendly version Share this

 

A little April Fool's Day Fun.

By Barry Pickens

 

April  1, 2015 (La Mesa)—After months of torn-up streets for revitalization of La Mesa’s downtown village, the city has unveiled its new landscaping plan.

“Today we are pleased to announce an Edible Forest for La Mesa,” said Mayor Mark Arapostathis, plucking a ripe apple off a newly planted tree beside city hall.  “All residents are welcome to help plant, harvest, and savor the fruits of these labors.”

One side of La Mesa Boulevard will be planted in grapevines and the other side will feature hops vines, thus sustaining the city’s burgeoning winemaking and craft brewery businesses.  There will also be a community vineyard and hops haven outside the La Mesa community center.

Since some merchants complained of tree roots growing into their businesses, large trees removed during sidewalk renovations in the village will be replaced by dwarf citrus trees.

A community vegetable garden will replace the lawn at City Hall, while trellis arching over Allison Avenue will offer luscious fruits ripe for the plucking. 

Beehives adjacent to the trolley station will house honeybees to pollinate the crops, also creating honey for La Mesa residents.   

At the request of La Mesa Chamber President Mary England, the hops growing will ultimately be expanded to fill the needs of the beer garden at Oktoberfest.

England also announced a change of venue for the next Taste of La Mesa, which will be held in the heart of downtown.  “Besides savoring fare from local restaurants, our visitors will be able to pick their own fresh fruits, vegetables, and for the more daring food foragers, honey.”

As a finishing touch,  new community chicken coops and a cheery red barn on the site of the former police station will house chickens and cows, producing fresh eggs and milk for local residents and restaurants.   Chef and former Council candidate Patrick Dean, who won his long-standing battle to legalize chicken ownership in La Mesa, praised the decision, exclaiming, “Bon appétit!”

Happy April Fool’s Day!  View more April Fools Day 2015 stories here.


Error message

Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting -- not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine's local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.