Almost ripe

Ready to eat.

Now that we finally have shade in the alley…..

A nearby building owner in the alley wants one Crepe Myrtle and all the Sabal Palms removed.  The city is concerned that the Crepe Myrtles will grow into the new power lines that were recently installed.  Drainage problems persist, and apparently the trees divert water toward the buildings in the alley.  The alley is a city right-of-way, and I want to do what is best for all parties.

Short History:  This has been a yearlong endeavor, and finally in February the trees were planted.  Prior to the tree planting, power lines were installed in the alley to prepare for the Gaines Street power line removal.  The installation of the new power lines in the alley and the new trees were not coordinated.

The most recent news from the city is that in January of 2011, trees smaller than the Crepe Myrtles in the alley now will be planted.   I can only hope this will happen.

Fennel is Going Crazy!

Art Alley is looking fantastic! Look what followed me home after watering today (it got dark before I made it up there yesterday, so I went first thing this morning!) … some fennel, which is going crazy, some little succulent sprigs that came off when I weeded this potted plant, some coriander, and 2 lettuce leaves that I put on my sandwich for lunch. Oh! and I also received lots of inspiration while at Art Alley… what a great place, you’ve truly created something amazing there! - HH

Here’s the Alley Sprouts gang getting ready to eat the EarthDay BirthDay cake.

Kevin, Dana, and Nakiesa waiting for the right time to……..

A great turnout on a beautiful EarthDay BirthDay day.

Ruth and Bill pose with a tiny EarthDay Globe.

Laid-back, take your time, acoustic music

Amanda gets a third eye by Echo.

Man in plastic bag maze.

FSU art professor Paul Rutkovsky digs through some tough clay soil as he helped to plant along a stretch of Gaines Street alley on Wednesday. The Alley Sprouts, a group of FSU art students worked to green up two alleys on Gaines Street on Wednesday, April 21, 2010. The students working to spruce up an alley behind Michael’s Pub on Gaines Street to get ready for a Friday earth day event.

Flower pots are arranged in an artful way as part of a beautification project by FSU art students.  The new entrance gets a new name for the Alley Sprouts, Alley S-r-o-u-t-s.

FSU student Erika Argo transplants some flowers into a
small garden plot on Wednesday.

With the addition of colorful flowers and art work, the former pass through alley near Michael’s Pub is being slowly transformed into a peaceful oasis.

Erika Argo and college professor Paul
Rutkovsky walk past the arful entrance
to the alley on Gaines Street.

FSU art professor Paul Ruthkovsky photographs his
students at work on Wednesday.

Student artwork and newly planted greenery are transforming a once litter infested alley into a mid-town oasis.

FSU student Ann Huskey plants a bush along the pathway of an alley near Gaines Street on Wednesday.

FSU art student Dana Williams
checks out some of the innovative
artwork on Wednesday.

Two years ago, Florida State University professor Paul Rutkovsky stepped out from behind his art studio on Gaines Street and into the dilapidated alley.

A forest of trash, weeds, junk and clothes made it impassable. Upset that a public space could be so neglected, he decided to do something about it.

Art Alley is the product of his discontent, a series of two connecting alleyways that have been cleaned, preened and greened by his students.

Beyond an archway of gathered wood now lies a garden of both edibles (lettuce, fennel, mint, eaten by passers-by and those that work there) and florals. Art peeks through the shrubs. A bark-lined pathway meanders between the greenery and a graffiti-covered wall. A smaller side alley is lined with trees recently planted by the city.

“We are taking a blighted space and turning it into a retreat,” said student Cara Cruce, an Alley Sprout, the name students in Rutkovsky’s Get Green workshop class call themselves.Rutkovsky hopes the city, which has helped some already, will get more involved in the greening of not only this alley but future dilapidated spaces as well.

And in honor of the 40th anniversary of Earth Day (which is today), the group is hosting EarthDay BirthDay, a showcase of student art and landscaping, from 5 to 7 p.m. Friday in the alley behind St. Michael’s Pub and The Engine Room.

The event will include a bake sale and various activities.

“The greening of the alley to me goes hand in hand with what Earth Day aims for,” said Alley Sprout Lauren Dalton.

“It’s opened our eyes about taking care of the Earth and what it means to be green,” Cruce said about the class.

Instead of purchasing all new materials, she now uses recycled ones and she’s even started a garden at her apartment complex.

She also enjoys showcasing her art somewhere other than indoors.

But taking care of an alley that was once the home to vagrants and is traversed by bar-going college students late at night isn’t always easy.

Over the winter break, the place was trashed when someone drove a vehicle into it.

“It’s kind of a give-and-take thing,” Cruce said about the destruction. “One week someone will take a pot and the next week a new plant will appear.”

The city of Tallahassee, which owns the alley, remedied the situation by adding a bollard (removable metal pole) at the entry way. Workers also recently planted trees and removed a buried oil tank.

“I think it can be a cool, funky element that adds to the overall character of the Gaines Street district,” said Roxanne Manning, program manager for the Community Redevelopment Agency, who has been involved in the Gaines Street revitalization project.

“This is going to be a major thoroughfare,” Rutkovsky said about his hopes for the alley to become a major connector between the new Gaines Street and the artistic community of Railroad Square. “It has so much amazing potential.”

While the alley is primarily being used for art student purposes, Rutkovsky also hopes it will one day be utilized by the community and other educational departments.The Department of Engineering has already taken it on as a project by creating a design that would aid drainage.

They hope to bring the plans to the city for approval and funding.

FSU’s Master Craftsman Studios, a working studio that teaches students the ins and outs of doing crafts work for others, also contributed by constructing a concrete entryway around the recently-added bollard.

“Everybody wants their city and community to look presentable, and this made such a difference,” said volunteer Charles Milsted, associate state director for AARP. “If the neighborhood looks well-kept people are going to enjoy it more.”

To volunteer or learn more visit getgreen.art.fsu.edu or contact Rutkovsky at prutkov@fsu.edu or 559-3819.

Contact reporter Amanda Nalley at (850) 599-2299 or abnalley@tallahassee.com.

The new issue of Get Green is finally printed with an edition of 2,000!

Liz, Dana, and Ira preparing the area for the designated alley entrance.

The form is nearly ready for the cement and stones.

Ready for cement

Here’s Liz after putting in the Alley Sprouts’ moniker.

The Spring Into Green event had a great turnout in spite of Gaines Street being closed after 7:00 pm because of construction.

Bailey and Brit smiling/smirking/hamming for the camera.

Many tie-dyed t-shirts

Echo and her pollinating bee painting on aluminum panel glistening in the sun.

Windham pigging out on green frosting cupcake

Sun setting on alley and art — a peaceful evening

Spring flowers coming up early in the cement planter

Here’s where Joe embedded broken tile into the soil at the south end of the alley.

A special thanks to Joyce for giving us over 30 portable chairs for alley events and to Joe and his pickup for helping load and unload the chairs.