Hello Kickstarter-

I have been thinking about you lately and wanted to let you know we are doing just fine. In case you have not been following us on facebook or our website I wanted to make sure you were in the know.

We made some headway recently with our terms. Its a bit tricky because the farm is on land owned by Parks, Recreation and Marine. Plus the Director of Parks has changed hands as well as our City Councilman. Lots of moving and shaking happening around here. Anyway, all the new parties are on board with the farm and we are back on track. Our lease goes before City Council on October 4th and from what I have been told we have 100% support. Looks like we will be back to work on the 5th.

Because of the delays we have not gotten any crops in the ground. I'm going to work on our soil this winter and get ready for spring planting.

Please look for your rewards this spring or early summer. We are making our tote bags now and the jam is already in the pantry.

Thanks again for your support. See you soon on the farm!

-sasha

Hello Backers-

Its been a long time but I wanted to check in and let you know we have been making some great progress on Farm Lot 59.

Over the winter we have removed the rotten dirt and replaced it with nice clean dirt. The dirt (I say dirt and not soil because it was pretty dead) that was previously there was not ideal for growing fruits and vegetables. We had originally planned to remediate the soil instead of replace it but in the end it was better for us to replace it. We now have nice clean dirt but this new dirt had no nutrients so we are back to square one.

VONS grocery store has generously donated a custom compost blend to our farm so that should be arriving any week now. Once we get that delivered we will then be making soil. Its confusing but its so important. All good things come from good ground and we really wanted to start off right.

One of the first things we need to do it erect our greenhouse. Its already time to get ready for fall planting. Crazy we are planning fall before the first tomato is ripe but that's part of the joy of farming. Planning what's next while you are reaping the current success.

We are currently working on your rewards. Our logo is finished and bags are being designed. I'm brainstorming ideas for the bricks, I'm thinking pizza oven, what do you think? And as soon as we get the produce in the ground your boxes will be the first ones we pack.

I hope you are following our progress on facebook or our website. I will be linking our blog to the website shortly. You all helped me make this farm a reality and I thank you very much. 

See you in the field very soon!

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Farm-Lot-59/157161800972837

www.longbeachlocal.org

Sasha Kanno

Hello backers-

I wanted to let you know we now have a Facebook page (thanks to Brenda) and since its easier to post there I might not be posting here much more.

But I did want you to know the grading has begun. Thanks to the City of Long Beach, Parks Recreation and Marine division they are grading for me. I am so thankful and amazed in how helpful the city has been with this project. Now if I can get them to commit to a land trust and agriculture use only I will be happy.

Please join the mailing list www.longbeachlocal.org, even if you are not in the area its nice to stay in touch. And look for us on Facebook, Farm Lot 59.

Thanks again, could not be doing it without you!!

-sasha

Hello Backers!

Thank you to most of you who were able to complete the survey. For the others who have not completed it I cannot resend, something to do with Kickstarter.

So please email me your mailing address and what you would like your brick to read. You can email me privately here:

sashakanno@mac.com

If you have already completed the survey I sent no need to email me.

Thanks so much!
Sasha

Just a reminder to please fill out the survey I sent to you. I will need your mailing address for your thank you card and also please note what you would like your brick to read.

Farm update: This morning I met with a contractor to get a bid on the leveling and grading. Bonus for getting up early were the 2 coyotes I saw. Pretty cool.

Thanks so much!

Hello bakers!

I wanted to drop you a quick note to let you know I will be getting organized with the rewards right after the holiday weekend.

Have a great holiday, I hope you all have something amazing planned.

Farm update: water meter was installed and I'm meeting the plumber this morning. Let there be water!!

40 more hours to go and Kickstarter will be all wrapped up. This has been not only amazing to get the funding to start Farm Lot 59 but its also been an absolutely amazing way to meet supporters like you. I hope to meet/ see all of you soon.

Please keep in touch and follow us at www.longbeachlocal.org and http://wrigleygarden.org I'll keep posting updates there.

For those of you who requested rewards I'll be working on that as soon as I receive my Backer Report. For those of you who choose the veggie box you might have to wait a bit. I have to grow the veggies and all, but I'll be in touch.

Thank you all very much for everything. I could not have done it without you, literally. You should be very proud of yourself for supporting this project. We are destined to be a success.

Much love and aloha-
Sasha

This is it, the final week of Kickstarter. I can't believe it will all be over soon. Hopefully this week will bring some answers in the permit, underground dig alert and insurance world. Oh the things I'm learning.

Stay tuned for more pictures and please join the mailing list to stay up to dates with the farm happenings. You can also read the Wrigley Garden blog which has some cool stuff on it.

Thanks for everything, talk soon...

Sasha
www.longbeachlocal.org
http://wrigleygarden.org

Happy Friday! Not tomorrow but next Saturday is the last day of Kickstarter. Its hard to believe its over soon. What an amazing experience this has been. Please keep the momentum for the last week. All funds are appreciated, keep spreading the word!

I will have a few more updates before we wrap it up. Please make sure you join our mailing list at www.longbeachlocal.org since I think once Kickstarter is over I will no longer be posting here. You will be able to follow our progress on our website and stay in the loop as to the happenings. Farm dinners anyone?

I appreciate all of you for everything you have done to help, motivate and inspire me. This farm is just the beginning.

Aloha-
Sasha

Today was hot and dirty but the Bioneers sure did work hard.

The city's trash truck came and the city workers actually got out of the air conditioned cab and helped load all the rubbish into the crusher truck, BY HAND!! I have heard this happened once before but today I saw it with my very own eyes. I'm proud of all of them.

Well folks we are just $399 short of our funding goal. I can't believe there is only 12 days to go. What a great summer. Envision it, plan it and then go for it! Quit your job it all works out in the end. Just kidding. :)

I'm still working out the insurance, permits and the water meter switch out. I have a feeling everything will happen in the same week and then all of a sudden we will be building our farm.

Thank you so much.

This picture is how the low land looked in 2004. Nice uh?

Hello backers!

I'm back from my family vacation and ready to finish big. We have $1,268 and 17 days to go. Please help spread the word and get all the funding possible for our little farm in the city.

Thank you for all the support. Yay for the farm!!

The Bioneer's have been working so hard. They started clearing the mulch yard by hand, they are amazing. Not only are they learning how to use muscles they have either never used before or have not used in a long time but they are learning how to work together. Our plan is working!

One of the perks of using your hands to do the work is you get to see what's happening on the ground level. These are all objects we have found while working. I'm favoring the cobra on fiberglass but you can pick your favorite. maybe I'll change the 'rewards' to some of these fantastic items.

Maybe next year we can have a birthday party at the farm. Thanks for all the support and messages. This week the Bioneer kids started clearing the brush and trash by hand. I had my doubts and was thinking they should wait for some heavy machinery but it turned out to be a great experience. A lot of these youth workers have never gotten dirty, never used their hands to build something. This project is already changing lives and we have not even begun.