JAMAICA, Vt. – A town-owned plot of land in Jamaica Village, which includes a popular stretch of sidewalk the length of a football field, will soon be preserved as a bio diverse pollinator meadow and a wildlife habitat, thanks to the efforts of a group of resident volunteers and the local selectboard. Work on the more than two acre parcel of land on Water Street will begin in May.
In June of 2022, residents interested in enhancing the property approached the selectboard with a request to create an intentional wildflower meadow on the southern portion of the property. A majority of selectboard members supported the idea and asked the group to form a committee and to propose a more formal plan and budget.
The Water Street Land Use Committee, along with interested neighbors, met regularly to discuss what they felt would be best for the land where four homes previously stood – homes destroyed in Tropical Storm Irene in 2011. After the demolition and clean-up of the buildings, FEMA deemed the land unfit for development and transferred ownership of the land, which extends across the road to the bank of Ball Mountain Brook, to the Town of Jamaica.
After much deliberation, the committee identified its goals. 1) To rid the land, including that along the stream bank, of invasive species (namely black locust and Japanese knotweed) and undesirable bramble. 2) To preserve the land in the back two thirds of the property as a wildlife habitat and thoroughfare for deer, fox, turkey, bear, etc. 3) Create an environmental and aesthetic asset for the town with the establishment of a bio diverse wildflower pollinator meadow in the front third of the property. 4) With this intentional meadow, and the ongoing need for planting and weeding, create an opportunity for multigenerational community engagement in healthy, social activity.
With the guidance of committee member and professional landscape architect Erica Bowman, the committee presented its plan to the selectboard at its Nov. 28, 2022 meeting. The board approved the plan and agreed to the requested 2022-23 funding of $5,404, which is roughly half of the total budget presented of $10,379. The committee has confidence in funding the balance of costs through grants, private donations, and volunteer labor.
“The Jamaica Community Pollinator Project” is the name of the group’s forthcoming effort to create a vibrant and beautiful bio diverse meadow. Volunteers are needed to help with this project in the spring and summer of 2023 and beyond. Needs include land preparation, planting of wildflower plugs, weeding, gardening supplies, and financial donations. Major initial contributions include use of water from the artesian well on the Gotgarts’ property of Water Street, and a donation of horse manure for fertilizer from the Schmids of South Hill Road.
The Jamaica Village School hopes to participate in the project. Plans include a presentation to teach students about the importance of pollinators and the need to protect their ecosystems, along with an invitation to include students in scheduled workdays. Additional school groups are encouraged to participate.
For more information on the Jamaica Community Pollinator Project, or to donate to the project, contact the Water Street Land Use Committee Chairperson Jacki Brown at jamaicavtpollinators@gmail.com.