Lisa Gottlieb, organizer of the Selma Cafe, made a presentation with her husband, Jeff McCabe, at the Nov. 10 meeting of the Ann Arbor greenbelt advisory commission. (Photos by the writer.)

Noting that this was the second time they’d looked at the issue, GAC chair Jennifer S. Hall suggested exploring other ways that the greenbelt program might achieve the same result, but that wouldn’t involve regularly moving the program’s fixed boundary.

Another theme of the meeting was local food. Two local food advocates – Lisa Gottlieb and Jeff McCabe – gave a presentation about their work raising money to fund construction of hoop houses at local farms. Gottlieb and McCabe host the weekly Selma Cafe, a breakfast gathering every Friday morning at their home that regularly draws more than 120 people. Commissioner Dan Ezekiel praised their work, and GAC chair Jennifer S. Hall expressed the hope that they could find ways to work together in the future.

Also during Wednesday’s meeting, commissioners voted to recommend an agreement with Webster Township, which is offering to contribute $50,000 to the purchase of development rights for the 146-acre Whitney farm. The city council has already agreed to pay $707,122 toward that purchase.

Greenbelt program manager Ginny Trocchio reported that the city has closed on the 51-acre Gould property, adjacent to the recently protected 286-acre Braun farm – both farms are located in Ann Arbor Township. The Braun acquisition bumped the greenbelt program over the 2,000-acre mark, she said – about 2,200 acres are now part of the greenbelt. The Brauns have agreed to open their property for a celebration in the coming months.

In other action, GAC voted unanimously to set public commentary rules in alignment with other city boards and commissions. And Hall noted that two vacancies will be opening up next year on GAC – she encouraged local residents who might be interested in serving on the commission to attend some of their meetings, or talk to their city councilmember about their interest.

The commission also got an update from city treasurer Matt Horning, who was responding to questions that commissioners had raised regarding a drop in investment income on the latest year-end financial statement.

GAC Financial Report: Coda

At the commission’s Sept. 8, 2010 meeting, Kelli Martin, financial manager for the city’s community services unit, gave an update on the greenbelt program’s unaudited financials for FY 2010, from July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010. Some commissioners questioned a sharp drop in investment income – from $815,261 last year to $130,011 in FY 2010 – and Martin agreed to ask the city treasurer, Matt Horning, to give a more detailed explanation of that decrease.

At Wednesday’s meeting, Horning began by giving a description of how the greenbelt monies are handled within the city budget. There are two funds: Fund 24, which includes revenue generated by the Open Space and Parkland Preservation millage; and Fund 29, which was set up for bond proceeds. [In FY 2006, the city took out a $20 million bond that’s being paid back with revenue from the millage. At the end of FY 2010, the remainder of the bond monies was $2.952 million.]

The bond proceeds (Fund 29) were invested separately from the city’s general operating portfolio, which pools money from various city sources to make investments. Separate investment decisions were made for the bond proceeds based on projected cash flow needs, Horning said, knowing that the city would be using the money for greenbelt purchases. There was a certain amount of guessing involved, he said, though they had targets for how much they thought they’d need for greenbelt acquisitions, and when those deals might flow. Every greenbelt purchase to date has been paid for out of the bond proceeds.

As the city has made greenbelt acquisitions, the bond fund has decreased, Horning said, so that by now, it’s approaching zero. [This includes purchases that have been earmarked from the $2.952 million, but not yet spent.] The intent is to merge the two funds, and close Fund 29. He noted that some confusion might have stemmed from the fact that the financial report given to commissioners consolidated the two funds, for reporting purposes.

When the two funds merge, Horning expects there will be $17.6 million in the combined fund balance. Additionally, he said there will likely be between $2 million to $4 million annually in excess revenue from ongoing millage proceeds available for the greenbelt program, after debt service payments are made.

Regarding concerns over investment income, Horning said the good news is the amount reported to GAC in September was an unaudited figure – the final number will be much higher, at about $492,000. To explain the difference, Horning said that at the end of the year, the city does a reclassification entry, required by the Government Accounting Standards Board (GASB). This mark-to-market accounting requires that the city record the actual market value of its investments at the end of the fiscal year – that is, what the value of their investments would be, if liquidated. If it’s worth greater or less than the book value of the investments, you have to record that difference, Horning said.

At the end of the last fiscal year – on June 30, 2010 – the city made a mark-to-market entry of about $362,000 for greenbelt investment income. That figure isn’t reflected in the financial statement that had been presented to the commission, Horning said. So the total investment income is actually about $492,000, he said.

Responding to a request for additional detail, Horning explained that on June 30 of this year, the fair market value of the city’s investments – its mark-to-market – was much higher than the book value, which is based on the investments’ original price. So on June 30, they recorded a large mark-to-market gain, Horning said, then closed the books on that fiscal year and prepared their financial statements. The next day, however, they made a reverse entry, he said. So the end-of-year snapshot showing a gain is almost immediately recorded as a loss for the start of the new fiscal year.

Horning said this accounting method, which is required by GASB, skews the financial statements when you look at them on an annual year-end basis. He described it as an accounting requirement, not a reflection of actual gain or loss.

Jennifer S. Hall said that Martin had indicated the investments for bond proceeds had performed better than the city’s general investment portfolio – was that the case? she asked. Yes, Horning said. He attributed the better return to the timing of their purchases of securities for Fund 29, which he said were able to achieve a higher rate of return than the general portfolio.

The current rate for the general portfolio is about 2.12%, and is projected to yield 1.57% in FY 2012. “Hopefully, I’m wrong,” he joked. “Hopefully it’s higher.”

Ezekiel asked what kinds of securities the city invests in. Horning said decisions are guided by the city’s investment policy and limited by state law – Public Act 20 – which describes the types of investments that government entities can make. Currently, the city’s portfolio is invested in the following percentages: 65% U.S. instrumentalities, 30% U.S. treasuries, 5% cash, in the form of repurchase agreements that Horning described as overnight investments collateralized by bonds.

Hall thanked Horning for coming, saying they now had a better understanding of how investments are handled.

Selma Cafe

Lisa Gottlieb and Jeff McCabe – hosts of FridayMornings@Selma, also known as the Selma Cafe – gave a presentation about their efforts to support the local food economy.

Gottlieb began by giving some background on the breakfast salon, which they hold each Friday in their home from 6:30-10 a.m., bringing together different volunteer chefs each week and using locally sourced food. The event, which regularly draws between 120-150 people, raises money for building hoop houses at farms in this region.

The effort started when they hosted a fundraising dinner for the nonprofit Growing Hope more than two years ago, Gottlieb said. But the tickets were high priced – even out of reach for them, she said – so they decided to hold something more informal. They hosted a breakfast for the filmmaker Chris Bedford, and called it Diner for a Day. The event drew about 160 people, and generated excitement for coming together to support the local food economy, she said.

They decided to keep it going as long as there were volunteers to support it, Gottlieb said. They now have about 500 people in their volunteer pool. They’ve served thousands of meals made by dozens of chefs – from some who own “fancy” restaurants to people who simply love to cook. They’ve raised about $120,000, she said. About $40,000 of that has gone back into the economy by purchasing local food and supplies. The remainder is being used for microloans to build hoop houses for local farms. To be eligible, farmers need to grow food to be sold locally at a reasonable price.

Next year’s goal is to build 20 hoop houses in 20 days, and they’re working to raise funds for that. The Farmer Fund was created for that purpose.

McCabe told commissioners that they are trying to plug into the goals of 10% Washtenaw – a campaign to ensure that 10% of the $1 billion that’s spent in this county on food each year is sourced locally. [See Chronicle coverage: "Column: The 10% Local Food Challenge"]

There are two main challenges to achieving that goal, McCabe said – finance, and four seasons. The Farmer Fund addresses this in two ways. Their microloan program will provide funds at a 2% interest rate, he said – he noted that a lot of farmers can’t walk into the bank and get financing. And by funding hoop houses, they’re providing a way for farmers to extend the growing season in this climate. By using volunteers to build the hoop houses, they’re also developing a skilled workforce, he said.

McCabe said he hoped that they could find ways to work with the greenbelt commission, and they are looking at next steps. He cited the example of the PCC Farmland Trust, a nonprofit created by the Seattle food coop PCC Natural Markets, as one model.

Selma Cafe: Commissioner Questions

Dan Ezekiel said he’d enjoyed several breakfasts at Selma Cafe, saying “your efforts and your activism are amazing.” He asked what their definition was of local food. It’s an issue that’s been tying the commission up in knots, he said.

Gottlieb said they first look for sources within Washtenaw County, or around the edges of the county. For things that aren’t grown locally – like tea and coffee – they buy from small local businesses and people who live and work in this community, she said, including the People’s Food Coop. McCabe added that sustainability is another factor. Sugar is one example, he said – do you buy Michigan GMO (genetically modified organism) sugar, or non-GMO sugar that’s non-local. It’s a difficult choice, he said.

McCabe said that for him, the slogan “Know Your Farmer” was a good one. The idea is to have a personal relationship with the people that provide your food.

Gottlieb said she was interested in opening up the definition of local food. She noted that they’d held a fundraiser the previous night featuring Michigan wines – the Mitten WineFest, hosted by wine expert Joel Goldberg. [Goldberg also writes a monthly wine column for The Chronicle.] Wine is an agricultural product too, she noted.

When asked by McCabe if his question had been answered, Ezekiel said that McCabe’s response doesn’t make the commission’s dilemma go away. GAC’s job is to advise the city council about how to spend taxpayer money, and that can’t be based on relationships – quite the opposite, he said.

In addition to geographical constraints of the greenbelt boundary, Ezekiel said they also struggled with the definition of locally grown food. Does it mean food that’s intended for local consumers, or just food that’s grown here, regardless of where it’s sold? For example, if a farmer grows sunflower seeds and some of it ends up as birdseed mix that’s sold locally, does that count as local food?

There are many nuances, McCabe said. For him, farms that grow corn and soybeans don’t contribute to the local economy, and might actually work against the local food system. He’d like to see an emphasis on food grown for local consumers.

Carsten Hohnke asked about the loan program – when loans are repaid, will the money go back out in new loans, creating an “evergreen” fund? Yes, that’s the plan. McCabe said they wanted to create something that wasn’t simply handing out money, and that could be a model to use as the dollar amounts grow.

Ezekiel asked for more information about the project to build 20 hoop houses in 20 days. McCabe said part of the impetus was that he didn’t want to give up 20 Saturdays next year, so they were aiming to consolidate their efforts into a shorter period. They also wanted to do a 20-day blitz to take advantage of student volunteers, and to get the work done between the time that farmers were planting and harvesting. Gottlieb added that the model harkens back to the time when farmers would help each other out for major projects on their farms.

Jennifer S. Hall wrapped up the discussion by acknowledging that these were difficult issues. She said when she first became involved in the greenbelt project, she’d been shocked to discover how many vendors at the farmers market came from outside of the greenbelt boundary. She said she hoped they could find areas of overlap to work with Gottlieb and McCabe, and to continue this discussion.

McCabe noted that the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture maintains a local food index, sorted by county. Right now, Washtenaw County has one of the worst local food index numbers in Michigan, he said, reflecting how most of the food consumed here comes from outside of the county. We have the opportunity to be one of the strongest, he said.

Subcommittee Formed to Study Greenbelt Boundary

At Wednesday’s meeting, GAC vice chair Dan Ezekiel proposed forming a subcommittee to examine possible expansion of the greenbelt’s boundary. [.pdf map of existing greenbelt district]

By way of background, in August 2007 the Ann Arbor city council expanded the greenbelt’s boundaries for the first time since the Open Space and Parkland Preservation millage passed in 2003. A summary of the ordinance for that expansion reads as follows:

Ordinance No. 26-07 amends Section 3:62(13) of Chapter 42, Open Space and Parkland Preservation of the City Code enlarging the boundaries of the Greenbelt District one mile to the west in both Webster and Scio Townships, one mile to the south in Pittsfield Township and one mile to the east in Superior Township and incorporates a new map of the boundaries, as revised, as part of Chapter 42.

Dan Ezekiel, left, talks with Carsten Hohnke before the start of the Nov. 10 greenbelt advisory commission. Ezekiel is GAC's vice chair; Hohnke is a GAC member who also serves on city council.

On Wednesday, Ezekiel explained that the original boundaries created a “nice, neat square.” As the commission started to develop a strategic plan, it became clear that some tweaks were needed, to take advantage of opportunities they had to protect land outside of those boundaries.

Similar reasons are driving the desire to again examine the boundaries, he said. As an example, Ezekiel cited two farm properties in Salem Township, owned by the same people and separated by a road. The owners wanted to sell development rights for both properties, but only one is inside the greenbelt.

He noted that several important properties that are now part of the greenbelt – including the Nixon and Smyth farms, which are helping to form a 1,000-acre block of protected land in Webster Township, as well as the Biltmore farm in Superior Township – lie outside of the original greenbelt boundary.

Another example can be found in Lodi Township, Ezekiel said. Until recently, there was little activity there related to the greenbelt. But that’s changed, and greenbelt properties now include the Girbach/Frederick farm, which will be put back into active farming.

Things have changed politically and economically over the years, he noted, and it’s worth another look at the boundaries.

Gil Omenn asked whether the subcommittee would simply look at the fixed boundaries, or whether they’d consider new criteria as well. He observed that no matter where you set the boundaries, there will always be exceptions that fall outside of those lines.

Ezekiel said he’s given that a lot of thought, and has talked to Peg Kohring of The Conservation Fund, which has a contract with the city to manage the greenbelt program. Kohring has a lot of creative ideas that they can consider, he said.

Omenn also asked Carsten Hohnke, a GAC member who represents Ward 5 on city council, whether Hohnke had any sense of council’s sentiment on this issue. Hohnke said he didn’t – other than the council would be open to investigating it. They’d probably want to know what properties have potential to join the greenbelt both inside and outside of the current district.

Jennifer S. Hall said she supported forming a subcommittee to discuss the issue, but she has some concerns. When they changed the boundary last time, her concern was that they were diluting the impact that the greenbelt had on Ann Arbor – proximity had been a selling point of the millage campaign. It was a large political change, she said. One proposal that didn’t get support in 2007 was a suggestion to leave the boundary in place, but to give them the option of going outside the boundary, if necessary. People wanted a fixed line, she said, and now they’re in the same position again. Rather than move the boundary every few years, they need to come up with a more permanent way to deal with this issue, she said.

Ezekiel said he took her concerns seriously, and they aligned with what Omenn had mentioned. They could look at language that would be more flexible and achieve the same goals. The last time they examined the boundary, Bob Johnson was a GAC member and on city council. At the time, Ezekiel said, it had been important to come up with something that would receive support on council.

Outcome: The commission unanimously agreed to form a subcommittee to examine whether to change the greenbelt boundaries, led by Dan Ezekiel. Any recommendation would then be considered by GAC, and ultimately the city council.

Agreement with Webster Township: Whitney Farm

The commission briefly discussed a resolution to accept a partnership agreement with Webster Township, which has agreed to contribute $50,000 toward the purchase of development rights for the 146-acre Whitney farm, located along Webster Church and Farrell roads. In July 2010, the Ann Arbor city council voted unanimously to pay $707,122 toward the purchase. The total cost is $1,125,592 – the federal Natural Resources Conservation Service is contributing $418,470 in matching funds.

Ginny Trocchio of The Conservation Fund, which manages the greenbelt program, told commissioners that they planned to take the resolution to city council in December, and hoped to close on the property by year’s end.

GAC chair Jennifer S. Hall thanked Webster Township officials for their contribution.

Outcome: The commission unanimously agreed to recommend that city council enter into a partnership agreement with Webster Township.

Greenbelt Update: Gould, Braun Farms

During her staff report, Ginny Trocchio noted that the city had now closed on the 51-acre Gould property, adjacent to the recently protected 286-acre Braun farm – both properties are located in Ann Arbor Township, which has its own land preservation millage. [For background, see Chronicle coverage: "Greenbelt Supports Ann Arbor Twp. Deals"] That brings the total greenbelt-protected land to about 2,200 acres, she said.

The Brauns have agreed to open their property for some sort of community celebration, Trocchio said. It is a significant property, she noted, because it pushed the total of greenbelt land over the 2,000-acre mark. Details are still being worked out for an event.

The city paid $1,412,417 of the total $3,878,583 purchase of development rights for the Braun farm, plus an additional $82,500 in due diligence, closing and monitoring costs. Ann Arbor Township contributed $1,412,416. The city also received a federal grant of $1,053,750 through the USDA Farm and Ranchland Protection Program (FRPP). For the Gould property, the total $669,833 purchase price included $238,667 from the city of Ann Arbor, $238,666 from Ann Arbor Township and $192,500 from an FRPP grant. In addition, the city paid $51,500 in due diligence, closing and monitoring costs.

Later in the meeting, the commission held a brief closed session and emerged to vote on another Ann Arbor Township property. They unanimously approved a resolution recommending that the city council accept 50% of the due diligence costs associated with the property. [The identity of the property and its owners are withheld until council approval.] Describing it as a great project, Dan Ezekiel noted that the township has taken the lead on this deal, which has been in the works since 2007.

Public Commentary Rules, GAC Term Limits

Jennifer S. Hall, the commission’s chair, introduced a resolution to set rules for public commentary. She noted that other boards and commissions have similar rules, but GAC did not. The proposal called for a five-minute limit per speaker, with a limit of four speakers at the meeting’s first opportunity for public commentary, and a requirement that they speak on issues related to agenda items. For the final public commentary time, there would be no topic requirement or limit to the number of speakers.

Catherine Riseng asked whether these rules would also apply to public hearings. Hall said that GAC had never held a public hearing, but that those were, by their nature, limited to a specific topic. She noted that the commission could waive these rules by a vote at any time.

Outcome: Public commentary rules were unanimously approved.

Later in the meeting, Hall noted that GAC members are limited to two, three-year terms. She and Gil Omenn will be ending their service at the end of June, leaving two vacancies on the commission as of July 2011. She encouraged anyone who might be interested to attend some GAC meetings and talk to their city council representative.

For most city boards and commissions, the mayor is responsible for nominating members, and those nominations are voted on by city council. However, GAC and the environmental commission differ in this respect – for those bodies, nominations are made by city councilmembers.

Misc. Items: NAPP Renewal, “Dirt Road Washtenaw”

During Wednesday’s meeting, commissioners and staff mentioned several items connected to land preservation issues and other related topics.

Dan Ezekiel highlighted the fact that on Nov. 2, voters had approved a 10-year renewal of the Washtenaw County natural areas preservation program (NAPP) by a “generous margin.” [The vote was 57.4% approval.] He noted that the outcome was wonderful, especially given that it’s hard to vote yes on a millage during these difficult economic times. He also observed that the county had tweaked the language related to NAPP funding so that farmland is eligible – that means the county might be able to partner more with the greenbelt in the future, he said. [See Chronicle coverage: "Washtenaw Natural Areas Tweaked for Ballot"]

In another election-related note, Gil Omenn reported that during governor-elect Rick Snyder’s acceptance speech, he’d stated that protecting and creating jobs was his No. 1 priority, but that his No. 2 priority was protecting the state’s quality of life and the environment. That’s “highly congruent with our priorities here,” Omenn said.

Book cover for "Dirt Road Washtenaw" by Rob Pulcipher.

Jennifer S. Hall called attention to a new book by Ann Arbor author Rob Pulcipher: “Dirt Road Washtenaw.” The book is a guide to cycling the county’s back roads, and Hall said that some of the land protected by the greenbelt is noted in the book. She also observed that an interview with GAC vice chair Dan Ezekiel is included in the book – along with a photo of Ezekiel’s bike. “Dirt Road” can be purchased online or at several local stores, including Nicola’s Books, Downtown Home & Garden and the downtown Ann Arbor Borders.

Present: Tom Bloomer, Dan Ezekiel, Jennifer S. Hall, Carsten Hohnke, Gil Omenn, Catherine Riseng

Absent: Peter Allen, Mike Garfield, Laura Rubin

Next meeting: Wednesday, Dec. 8, 2010 at 4:30 p.m. at the Washtenaw County Board of Commissioners boardroom, 220 N. Main, Ann Arbor. [confirm date]

Marianne Rzepka

Tomm Becker hasn’t been afraid of a spring frost killing the lettuce, tomatoes, cilantro, kale and chard he’s growing at Sunseed Farm.

That’s because he’s growing them under the plastic cover of a 30-by-96-foot hoop house, which since last fall has been a source of vegetables through most of the winter.

Hoop houses let the sun in, and the solar-powered heat warms up the soil and keeps tender plants from freezing in early and late frosts. When a strong wind flapped the hoop house cover at Sunseed Farm last week, it blew through the openings where the plastic had been hoisted to provide ventilation. The day before had brought cold temperatures and heavy rains that flooded the nearby rye field, so the side flaps had been down to keep the heat in.

“The great thing (about hoop houses) is you can control everything,” Becker says.

Hoop houses aren’t just for farms – a backyard hoop house can give anyone a head start on the season. Then even into the winter, you can grow some cold weather crops – like lettuce – or store root crops, like carrots.

But like anything else in your garden – ponds, chickens, a compost pile – a hoop house is a project that never stops.

Small Farms, Year-Round Local Produce

The Sunseed Farm hoop house is working so well for Tomm and Trilby Becker that they’ll be getting another one in about a week at their farm off Joy Road, just northwest of Ann Arbor. In time, they want to have about five hoop houses to grow a variety of vegetables throughout most of the year for members of their CSA (community-supported agriculture) program.

The Beckers’ hoop house, along with several others in the area, were built with microloans from Repasts, Present and Future, an organization run by Lisa Gottlieb and Jeff McCabe to support local farmers. [Much of their funding comes from donations raised during their weekly breakfast salon – Friday Mornings @ SELMA – held at their home on Ann Arbor's west side and featuring local chefs and locally produced food.]

With hoop houses, says Gottlieb, a local farm can produce food for most of the year. “For our climate, hoop houses are really something terrific,” she says.

Hoop houses allow you to control, to some degree, the microclimate within the structure. When the sun is shining and the temperature is going up, you can open the vents to cool down the heat that can easily climb to more than 100 degrees, even in the winter. And when the heat increases, the humidity also builds up. After a while, the plants just can’t breathe, Tomm Becker says.

Of course, there are things that are beyond anyone’s control. During the winter, clouds and cold – along with the shorter daylight hours – will keep pretty much anything from growing. “In late December and January,” says Becker, “everything is pretty much in stasis.”

The trick is to plan ahead, planting crops late in the past season that can be picked in the dead of winter, he says.

It’s also tough to control what gets into that hoop house, which can be a warm and comfortable place for greens-eating critters – like mice and voles – during the winter. And some insects, like aphids, will find a warm, moist hoop house their idea of heaven. Moisture also is a wonderful medium for growing fungi, which is not good unless you’re raising mushrooms.

Backyard Hoop Houses

If you’re interested in simply feeding yourself and your family, you might be able to get by with a 1,500-square-foot hoop house, says John Hochstetler, who has four hoop houses that provide about 6,000 square feet of space for growing vegetables and flowers for the market. It can even be pretty cheap, he says, if you save your own seeds.

The first thing to do is figure out what you want in a hoop house. “If you don’t know what you’re doing,” says Hochstetler, “it’s going to be a big mess.”

Get some good materials, including heavy duty plastic and a framework that will stand up. Hochstetler’s first hoop house was built with plans he found online, and PVC piping from a big box store. The first heavy snowfall smashed his work flatter than a bug. Lesson learned, Hochstetler now builds his hoop houses with steel frames.

If you’d like to start with something a little smaller, Ann Arbor architect Dave Sebolt has designed a hoop house measuring roughly 12-by-12 feet that costs about $200 to build. And it’s got a shape that will keep the snow load from building up.

“The one I put together has a little roundedness on the top,” Sebolt says. “It gets into a 40-degree slope, more a parabolic arch. If the angle is 45 degrees or steeper, the snow will slide off.” (Click here to download a copy of his plans.)

He also found that snow piled around the base of the structure might cause the ribs to collapse at the ground level. His solution is to simply clear that snow away. It might also help to mulch along the base or use foam to keep out the critters.

Sebolt also suggests that hoop house builders stretch the side plastic down into the ground, to better anchor the structure against any winds that might tip it over or fly it off to Oz.

There are advantages to larger hoop houses. Smaller structures can overheat quickly. Larger ones also can overheat, but it will take longer. By the same token, larger structures will take longer to cool, which keeps frost off from the plants more effectively.

No matter what the size or the season, you’ll have to keep an eye on the temperature. Sebolt recommends using heat pistons that expand with the heat to open ventilation windows and contract when the temperature cools, so that the windows close.

The heat/cold, moisture and sun principles are the same whether you’ve got a commercial-size hoop house, a portable cold frame that fits over a single bed or something as simple as a glass bell jar or the bottom of a plastic milk carton.

I don’t have anything like a hoop house in my yard, because the space is just too small. But I might be able to use something like a cold frame, which is just a wooden box with a cover that lets in light and keeps frost away from transplants.

They can be small, portable and much cheaper than a full-fledged hoop house. You could put a 5-by-10-foot cold frame together for as little as $25 if you use recycled materials – using an old shower door for the top of the cold frame, for example. Ann Arbor’s ReUse Center or Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore are great places to look for what you need.

About the writer: Marianne Rzepka, former reporter for the Ann Arbor News and Detroit Free Press, is a Master Gardener who lives in Ann Arbor and thinks it’s fun to turn the compost pile.

Hank Beekley with his team of draft horses – a Belgian and a Shire – disks the field. The hospital building is visible in the background. The view is roughly to the northwest. (Photos by the writer.)

The centerpiece of the current effort is a 30 x 96-foot hoop house, which began construction on Monday. It will be joined by a second hoop house later in the summer, and plans call for a dozen of the structures to be built in the coming years.

The vegetables grown on the plot will be used in the hospital cafeteria and patient meals, and sold at a farmers market, with excess donated to Food Gatherers.

On Monday and again on Wednesday this week, Hank Beekley and his team of draft horses helped with the effort to transform about an acre of St. Joseph’s 356-acre campus in Superior Township to productive farming.

Tuesday was an off day for the horses – wet conditions were the key factor. But Beekley himself was there on Tuesday, along with other volunteers and St. Joseph’s staff to help build the first hoop house, which was already off to a good start based on Monday’s work.

Hoop House Construction

Overseeing the hoop house construction on Tuesday was Dave Raymond, who is St. Joseph’s service delivery leader for planning.

The skeleton of the hoop house had taken shape by Tuesday morning on the campus of St. Joseph Mercy Hospital in Superior Township.

He explained that the pieces of untreated lumber affixed to the bottom of the metal pipe ribs are skirt boards – that’s where the plastic covering will be attached. It will be a double-Visqueen covering, he explained, with the design allowing for the plastic to be rolled up for venting.

Without the ability to vent, Raymond said, the temperatures inside the hoop house during summer weather would easily reach 140 degrees. That kind of solar gain, however, is what will allow the hoop houses to produce vegetables year round, even through the winter. In addition to protection from the exterior walls of the hoop house, additional row covers might be required for the most extreme cold, he said.

Raymond confirmed that the structure is engineered to withstand a snow load. Part of that strength will come from the purlins that were being installed on Tuesday morning. Purlins are the horizontal members that join the ribs of the structure and provide lateral stability.

What’s the Investment?

Each hoop house, said Raymond, reflects about a $10,000 investment, or $120,000 for the 12 hoop houses that are eventually planned. On Tuesday morning, Raymond told The Chronicle that he expects the total investment to break even in around three years.

In the foreground is St. Joseph Mercy CEO Rob Casalou. Left (in the green cap) is Dave Raymond, who is overseeing hoop house construction. Right (white jacket) is Lisa McDowell, head of nutrition at St. Joseph. On the flatbed truck attaching purlins are Mike Score and J.P. Swanson.

The projected return factors in (i) the cost savings of not mowing the area, (ii) the cost savings from using the vegetables grown in the hoop houses in the hospital cafeteria and for patient meals, and (iii) proceeds from the sale of the vegetables at a farmers market to be run two days a week at the hospital.

But Rob Casalou, CEO and president of St. Joseph Mercy, said Tuesday that he has not given the project a time period to show a financial return. The commitment is based on the fact that it’s a good idea, he said – that the hospital is not just a place where people go and get fixed, but rather it provides support for overall wellness. Besides Raymond, Casalou gave credit to two others for moving the hoop house project forward: Lisa McDowell, who is head of nutrition for St. Joseph Mercy, and Dr. Steve Thiry, a St. Joseph Mercy physician.

The Wellness Angle: Fruit, Bees, Syrup

Lisa McDowell, head of nutrition at St. Joseph Mercy, spent part of Tuesday morning wielding a shovel. But she also took time to tell The Chronicle that besides the 12 hoop houses and the exterior garden space, there are also plans to add fruit trees: pear, apple, peach and plum. They’re also thinking of adding some bee colonies, and tapping the numerous maple trees on the property to make maple syrup.

McDowell ballparked the number of meals served at St. Joseph Mercy at more than 3,000 a day. And according to Dave Raymond, they’d need 12 hoop houses just to provide all the lettuce. But it’s planned as more than just a symbolic effort – his estimated three-year payback on the investment is consistent with that idea.

McDowell also put the hoop house project in the context of the Health Care Without Harm (HCWH) initiative, which St. Joseph Mercy has signed. From HCWH’s website:

HCWH is committed to driving the green revolution in healthcare, making the connection between good health and a clean environment, and positioning healthcare’s core principle of “first, do no harm” as a central pillar of sustainable society.

Mike Score, president of Hantz Farms in Detroit and former Michigan State University Extension educator for Washtenaw County, helps attach purlins.

Dan Bair has been hired by St. Joseph Mercy to farm the hoop houses and to operate the farmers market.

Hank Beekley and Kyle Bunton affix skirt boards to a hoop house.

J.P. Swanson prepares to measure twice and cut once.