Print
Category: Local News Releases Local News Releases
Published: 20 May 2015 20 May 2015

Come join us Saturday May 30 from 9:00 AM to 2:00 PM and learn about adobe construction with Mule Creek Adobe. We will be building the first wall that will define the space for a parklet funded by a PNM Power Up grant. The parklet will be under the former gas station canopy in front of the Town of Silver City Office of Sustainability at 1106 N. Pope Street. Mule Creek Adobe will have two instructors and will need 6 volunteers to help with the construction. Others are welcome to observe and ask questions. The wall will include bancos and planters that will add aesthetics and provide support. If you want to be one of the six volunteers to provide labor, please call the number provided below to get on the list and get further instruction.

The parklet project includes many facets, with a goal of creating a green, meaningful public space at the Office of Sustainability that attracts people, creates local identity, and provides an educational experience. Other features of the parklet will include two walls, one of adobe and one of chipcrete to showcase alternative building materials. These features will be built around the parklet to delineate the space and provide a cozy area protected from sun and wind. Once the walls are completed, comfortable seating will be installed in the enclosed space, surrounded by education features designed to demonstrate energy efficiency. Passersby will be encouraged to stop, relax and reflect on the visually intriguing surroundings.

Reyne Maynes of NM Professional Painters assisted on the ground as Rocky Maynes and Javier Alvarado painted the former filling station canopy at the Office of Sustainability in Silver City.

Painting the old red and white gas station canopy green and the support columns brown to look like a tree canopy was the first step in the project. Local contractor New Mexico Professional Painters painted the canopy and Nichols Welding crafted and installed metal to simulate tree branches at the tops of the columns. Local artist Diana Ingalls Leyba and the Fine Arts Department at WNMU will finish this transformation in the future by painting canopy leaf and tree trunk details.

To volunteer to help with construction or for more information contact Denise Smith at 575-654-5117 or email denisesmithnpc@gmail.com.