A few of us visited 21 acres yesterday for the first time and can I just say, “Wow!” It is obvious that some very hard work has paid off immensely. I am including some photos but for a more comprehensive view you can visit their website: http://21acres.org/
First of all, it was spectacular weather for late February. The sunny, (almost) spring days in the Pacific Northwest are so full of hope and smiles (let’s not think about the snow predicted for tomorrow). It was the perfect day to tour 21 acres, which do the fourth Friday of every month from 11-2 pm, but no need to wait until then; self guided tours are available anytime the farm gate is open.
There is plenty of space for kids to run around and have fun. There are two goats on the property that will love to nibble at your sweater as you scratch their heads.
There is a beautiful pizza oven/outdoor fireplace.
There is a magnificent herb spiral that is in need of an organization to take over its care and make it thrive once more. If you or your organization is interested you can contact 21 acres to offer your services.
It was at this point of the tour that someone said, “I don’t ever want to leave.”
I laughed and agreed, but it got me to wondering why we couldn’t have something like this in Renton? The answer is: we can and dare I say we will. We have some very motivated, intelligent and amazing people that are willing to work towards making this happen. Although the demographics are slightly different in Renton than they are in Woodinville and the initial motivation for a project like this may have to be tweaked to suit our community needs, the basic principles can be the same: A vital, public space where people can rediscover or perhaps discover for the first time the importance and heritage of local agriculture.
One of the highlights of the tour was a visit to the Farm Store where they sell local produce and value added products. The pickled blueberries put out by Bow Hill Bluberries from Bow, WA, were highly recommended so I bought some and can I say that my mind is sufficiently blown. They were absolutely amazing. The Farm Store is open Fridays 11 -6 and Saturdays 10-4 during the winter. Yesterday was truly our lucky day.
I encourage everyone to go and see how their green building handles gray and green water off of the grid, truly an innovative system.
The bottom line is we all had a great time exploring the possibilities and day dreaming.
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