my husband and i met this afternoon with a woman who will be running for mayor (against incumbent gerald naftaly) in oak park, michigan.
she is sooooooooooo sweet, but she’s also smart and down-to-earth and personable and easy to talk to. i’m not saying mayor naftaly isn’t; in fact, i have never met him nor had any conversation with him. i have nothing against him personally, but it would seem that, under his leadership, the city has gone a bit
CRAZY.
even the police officers in oak park are on the side of this woman, so i decided to check her out.
we emailed her and asked her if we could sit down and talk to her and hear some of her ideas. and she emailed us back!
unlike the current oak park officials, who won’t even return phone calls, she got right back to us. now i know she is not mayor yet, and maybe if she had a city to run she would have less time for her constituents, but i don’t get that feeling from her. she seemed, via email and then in person, like a very genuine person.
her son is andy meisner, who i think went to high school with one of my sisters, so i should probably disclose that upfront, lest anyone dig up “dirt” on my secret connections to her- hahahahaha! but seriously, she is a nice lady with some good ideas. we were really impressed by what we heard.
oh, i should probably give you her name, huh? 
it’s MARIAN McCLELLAN.
i wrote that in capitals so you would make sure to take notice.
i think more people should contact her and hear what she has to say. i’m not saying you should like her because i like her; i’m saying that if you meet her, i think you will like her all on your own 
her website is www.marian4mayor.com
that’s all for now- it’s family time, so i’m going to unplug. have a great night! -julie
Jul 15, 2011 @ 20:13:37
Good Shabbos!
Jul 15, 2011 @ 20:27:58
LOL. I went to school with Andy, so perhaps I went to school with your sister as well. I have followed your journey and I commend you. My father was always a PIA for the city of Berkley and as a kid, I never understood the importance of standing for what you know is right. Keep up the good work, and please know that even if the lime light wanes – people will chime back up if you come under fire again! This issue has come to light in communities all across the country and major changes are occurring because of it!
BTW – the dog license thing will go away as soon as you go to court with your paperwork. Dogs must be licensed within city limits, whether they come into contact with others or not. Many MI communities do door to door surveys, so it likely was convenient for them to hit you up for it. Malicious? Maybe. But it will be excused the day you walk into court.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:46:02
let’s hope so- and i will try to remember to ask my sister if she knows you!
Jul 15, 2011 @ 20:35:03
Hey Julie, one of the things you might want to consider is that it really isn’t the mayor, or any other elected official that is behind what you went through with your veggie garden, etc . . . it is the City Manager, which it looks like the city of Oak Creek has, that really sets the TONE for issues like yours. That City Planner guy answers to the City Manger in the hierarchy of city politics. When I called the city in support of your efforts, I contacted the City Manager’s office and indicated to him that I thought the Planning Department head was out of control and that it was up to him, the city manager, to rein him in because he (the planning dept head) was causing the city to have a bad name all over the world.
An elected mayor and city council can “set the agenda” for a city, but it is up to the city staff–under the leadership of the city manager–to implement the day-to-day plan, using any personal management philosophy style they favor.
I applaud everything about what you and your family have done to “fight city hall”. I wish only good things in the future for you and your family.
)
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:43:36
interesting- i really never knew that. information is power- so thanks for throwing some my way! have a great weekend- julie
Jul 15, 2011 @ 20:36:58
A pro Veggies mayor!! Speaking of which I am going to see Ron Paul next month
Jul 15, 2011 @ 22:57:00
Ron Paul in 2012!!! where is he going to be?
Jul 15, 2011 @ 20:40:06
even the police officers in oak park are on the side of this woman, so i decided to check her out.
Never vote for someone supported by police unions. Public employee unions are a corrupting influence on politics. I’d rather have a nebbish like Gerry Naftaly than someone in the pocket of the public employees.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:57:21
hey ronnie- i don’t think she is in the pocket of anybody. for example, i am supporting her (which she did not ask for ) and she is not in my pocket… i think sometimes people just see that there needs to be change, and sometimes those people happen to be within the current system. nothing sinister…
Jul 15, 2011 @ 20:40:07
This is what I said on my post you earlier, the best way to deal with your type of council offical is to get rid of them by voting! That’s what they are most afraid of losing power! Good luck to Marian, just tihnk what she could do with your support.
Glad your not going to jail by the way
Hugs Stef Australia
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:59:04
let’s say we HOPE i am not going to jail… they have 2 misdemeanor charges now instead of one, and it seems like they can reinstate the garden charge any time they want… not out of the woods yet, but i do appreciate your positive attitude! -julie
Jul 15, 2011 @ 20:53:49
. . . I also forgot to mention that for a city of 30,000 in population, the city staff is quite large . . . perhaps what happened to you is as simple as “someone” having waaaay too much time on their hands and not enough to do to justify their salary . . . maybe . . . maybe not . . .
Jul 15, 2011 @ 20:58:52
Julie, After reading about this silliness on Food Freedom last week, I wrote a blog post about your situation. (“It’s also illegal to grow your own in Michigan”) Last September a man in Georgia was fined for growing vegetables, and my post about that got a lot of attention.
I’m sorry that you’re having to go through this nonsense, but you certainly have supporters! One of them commented on my post and included a link to your city manager’s email so that everyone can let him know how they feel about the situation.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:44:35
thanks for the post and thanks for the support! my readers rock!
-julie
Jul 15, 2011 @ 21:16:59
Not only is Andy Meisner a classmate of your sister’s, he’s also the current Treasurer of Oakland County.
http://www.oakgov.com/treasurer/
Jul 16, 2011 @ 00:49:40
And he’s a Democratic party hack. Can’t any of these guys get a real job?
Jul 16, 2011 @ 16:35:55
I just posted about the most recent developments in your case, including the interest Marian Meisner McClellan is showing, on Crazy Eddie’s Motie News.
Oak Park’s “War on Veggies” is now an election issue and other news
May the news continue to improve for you!
Jul 18, 2011 @ 18:00:09
thank you for everything! -julie
Jul 15, 2011 @ 21:34:58
Here is a website that has lots of reasons why you should be growing your own veggies. http://foodfreedom.wordpress.com/
I don’t know how much you know about Genetically Modified Organisms(wheat, corn, soy, sugar-beet, and a host of others) what I can tell you is that in the long term it will be very bad for all of us. Not just because of the pesticide/herbicides they are putting into the food crop DNA but also because once that DNA is there and crosses into the wild cousins it can NEVER be taken back. Some of this DNA uses virus carriers to implant it into the plant DNA; some of the Foreign DNA is animal DNA rather than even plant. They DO NOT safety test any of this for human consumption and there is so much already on US grocery store shelves that is not labeled it would give people the rum-horrors if they truly understood what was happening.
Where I live in Maine, we believe in the right to chose what we can eat. Towns have banned the use of GMO seeds by farmers so the organic growers will not have their crops contaminated and have the opportunity to save seed for the following year or sell seed to others as well. Unlike most GMO seed that is patented and the farmer is not allowed to save any seed from the new crop.
Organic Consumer Association is a good place to start research into Monsanto and all their buddies.
Please work to ensure that Oak Park residents have the option to grow veggies. Take a look at http://www.commongroundinpaloalto.org/ that is what I call edible landscaping!!!!! Note the phrasing “Landscaping” and Edible do go together.
BTW I’m not some kook – just a vet that can’t do what she loves most (working on aircraft) so is doing my second love – gardening. I’ve 3 yrs or horticulture schooling and been through several Master Gardening Courses. I also am very curious and tend to do a lot of research when I start hearing about things that just don’t seem right or healthy. http://www.nap.edu/about.html this site now lets you down load the pdf versions of their books and studies for free!!!!! nap= The National Academies Press Love this site for researching info.
Best of luck with the idiot bureaucracy – I can appreciate how you feel. Remember that you have the RIGHT to EAT HEALTHY CHEM-FREE FOOD!
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:40:38
you must know how much i love research!!! thanks for giving me more reading material
seriously, though- thanks!
Jul 17, 2011 @ 17:03:43
your welcome
Jul 15, 2011 @ 22:02:08
Julie — hope you’re reading the comments on the article about your new charges at infowars.com……some good ideas in those comments…..
http://www.infowars.com/front-yard-gardener-faces-new-charges/
Jul 17, 2011 @ 00:00:09
great article- thanks for posting the link!
Jul 15, 2011 @ 22:04:44
On either side of your keyboard there’s a big button marked “SHIFT.” Using it would make you look less like a high-school dropout.
That being said, I fully support your front-yard garden, and would be proud to have you as a neighbor. Good luck in your fight against the Stasi, or the Nazis, or whatever group your local power-hungry low-life jack-booted thug politicians are.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:36:11
really, you think i seem like a high school dropout???? because i don’t use capital letters???? (and that was a sentence fragment- i know) thanks for your offer of neighborliness, and thanks for the support about the garden. i guess i can’t ever impress everyone all the time- so i hope you’ll keep following the blog, in spite of my marginal intelligence…
Jul 15, 2011 @ 22:38:59
“Common” in Germany in the early ’40′s was support of the Nazi party. Humm… “Common”…
Jul 15, 2011 @ 22:56:09
alex jones keeps julie’s case on the radar and summarizes the switch to the charges involving the dogs. see 5:45 of this video.
http://www.infowars.com/infowars-news-brief-from-southern-california/
Jul 17, 2011 @ 00:01:03
the alex jones people have been awesome!!!
Jul 16, 2011 @ 00:51:25
I’m sure Julie and her family would prefer to forego this avenue, but actually, it would be good if this would go to trial if the judge would rule that a law must be exactly specific for someone to be prosecuted, and if it is not, it cannot be prosecuted. This would set a precedent that other courts could follow for rulings around the country, which would be good for the citizens of this country against the globalists writing these vague laws that can be used against citizens by decree.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 00:53:11
I think the prosecuter needs a little heat.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:32:24
i’m sorry elizabeth- i took out the info about the prosecutor. i know it is public info, and i definitely wish he would get off my case, but i think he is just trying to do his job, and this is probably not his fault. i’m not sure how much discretion he has to maneuver… that said, i think his statements on the fox news programs are pretty off base. when he compared our garden to living next door to a corn field or a chicken coop, i didn’t know whether to laugh or to cry. i wouldn’t rule out corn or chickens if i could have them , but i think rather than coming off as aggressive toward me, he just came off as a little pathetic… i probably should post his info, but at this point, i just feel kind of bad for him…
Jul 16, 2011 @ 02:55:49
I wish I lived in Michigan, because she would have my full fledged support. However, I will support her from the confines of Massachusetts. After reading her facebook page a little, and other things, She really does seem like a great candidate who cares, I pray she wins.
The fact that you have not been contacted by the mayor by now is crazy. You would think that if your constituents were prosecuting someone, and 30k people joined the fight, that he’d at least call, offer an apology, offer advice, even make a statement on the issue, rather than sit behind his desk and hope that it doesn’t tarnish the reputation of oak park (which from now on, every time I hear Oak Park, I will think “hates veggies”"). If she wins, I see a nice future for Oak Park and it’s residents. Keep fighting the good fight.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 02:56:15
Can you get voting rights with a P.O. box?
Jul 17, 2011 @ 00:01:49
i don’t think so
Jul 16, 2011 @ 03:50:48
I wrote to krulkowski@ci.oak-park.mi.us, gnaftaly@att.net, and Rick.Snyder@michigan.gov on 10 July. delighted to hear that there has been some action, even though not all positive. Good luck and keep the interviews going in the press – you may be able to use the momentum to your advantage.
Dear Mr Rulkowski,
I have just read an article related to Julie Bass and the management of her front garden (full story at http://www.theagitator.com/2011/07/07/does-michelle-obama-know-about-this/).
I am writing to voice my thoughts, as an international citizen. America has a certain reputation around the world – what we call ‘all fur coat and no knickers’. That means that you are seen as people of surface, of appearance, and that you lack internal quality or substance. I have to say that your decision to prosecute Ms Bass over planting a garden in front of her house does little to shift that perception. Rather than gain a champion of healthy living to promote across your city, you stifle the dissenting voice and look for homogeneity. What a shame in this age where a reexamination of lifestyles and values seems so important. In the Mayor’s message on the Oak Park website he talks about the changing times and the need for new practices to replace old. Ms Bass’ home gardening plans seem very compatible with this new vision for a 21st century Oak Park. Is Michigan forward looking, or backward acting?
I do hope that you will reconsider.
Dr Brad Martin
Newcastle upon Tyne, England
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:26:42
well jolly good dr. martin! but some us do actually have a bit of substance, you know
Jul 16, 2011 @ 04:04:03
you’re still making it into Radley Balko’s blog — http://www.theagitator.com/2011/07/15/new-charges-in-the-oak-park-veggie-garden-madness/
Jul 16, 2011 @ 14:47:53
I should have said OAK PARK is still making the news at the Agitator.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 05:10:47
Hey.
It’s awesome news that you found a powerful ally
I am an IT system analyst, and when I heard about your story on GrowYourGreens – youtube one thought came to my mind. There is a problem that you are violating the “suitability” requirement.
I think there is an angle to this problem that you missed. What I came up with is going for “green-low carbon emissions” law that are already in place in your town.
By showing that you follow “low carbon emissions law” that i think most areas have these days, you will show that you actually followed city’s ordnance to be more “green” by limiting fossil fuel usage by using locally grown greens. This might create a situation where city will be fighting not against you but against their own ordnance
I’m not a lawyer, but an analyst and i see some angles. Check it with your lawyer how it would fly in your area, maybe this approach would be feasible after all
Let me know what do you think about it, and if my message got through to you. And keep your chin up
Cheers
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:25:06
interesting idea- i will definitely pass it along… thanks for checking in- hope you’ll continue to visit. have a great weekend! -julie
Jul 16, 2011 @ 07:00:40
“If we desire respect for the law, we must first make the law respectable.” Justice Louis Brandeis. Lemonade stand, your lawn, another lemonade stand and a 9 month old’s pat-down for concealed items in his Osh Kosh b’Gosh Playoalls, just in the last few weeks. “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” Lord Acton. From the police chief in a small town in Georgia, through the prosecutor in Oak Park, to the TSA in our airports and our congress, president and the supreme court, we see the steady march of the statist tyrant. Tyrants who grow nothing, produce nothing but having obtained power use it to tax the labors, lands and products of the American citizen and stifle the liberties of the American citizen, using their ill gotten gains to reward financially and socially those useful idiots who vote to keep the tyrant in power. Our American ancestors did not institute this government among men to stifle the individual but to ensure the God given rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are maintained. It is our duty to resist encroachments to our liberty, legally but with clarity of purpose and absolute determination. The statist politician must be replaced by the servant representative to provide a government that governs least, and thus best. My .02, keep up the fight. Regards, John
Jul 16, 2011 @ 07:52:13
Eat your heart out, Mayor G. Gnaftly.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 07:55:03
All over our country, a few petty Hitlers in government seek to encroach on our liberties. They anonymously misuse their entrusted powers to bully fellow citizens. We should deprive them of their “faceless bureaucrat” cover. Whenever possible, let’s publicize them by name, photograph, and position any of these people who overstep. It is a civic duty to let our neighbors and friends know who they really are.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 09:26:51
I hope your readers will also help support Compassion Farm in Vancouver, BC. They healed the land on a 2.5-acre gravel pit, transforming it into a beautiful urban organic farm that is helping to feed their community. The owners are ordered to cease food production and are faced with 6 months jail time. Change.org petition is here: http://www.change.org/petitions/save-compassion-farm-2
Jul 16, 2011 @ 10:11:15
Keep it up good lady. You are the point of the spear in our struggle for restoration of our personal freedoms.
Jul 17, 2011 @ 00:03:53
wow- that’s quite a high mark to set- hope i can be worthy…
Jul 16, 2011 @ 10:16:49
Julie,
Here is a link to application form to express your interest for appointment to a Board or Commission in Oak Park: http://www.ci.oak-park.mi.us/forms_brochures/files/boards&commission%20application.pdf
You can indicate your preference of appointment(s). My suggestions are as follows:
#1 Beautification Advisory Commission
#2 Zoning Board of Appeals
#3 Planning Commission
I would suggest submitting your application this week while you are “off the hook” from the gardening issue. When you hand your application to the clerk, ask about the process to add specific issues to the city council agenda. And ask about the process to recommend that specific ordinances be brought for review to the city council. You or your attorney should get a copy of all citations using the landscaping ordinance that the city has issued during the past 12-18 months and then research the specific issues in the citations and the final resolutions with the property owners.
I would also suggest that you submit any/all requests to the city in writing and document all info about the communication, who you handed things to, the date and time, and any other supporting documents attached to the communication and keep full copies. Let the clerk see your folder that has both the original you are submitting AND the copy you retained. Number all pages just in case they “lose” part of the application. You will need to act fast to get ahead of the curve the city is already planning as they review and tweak and rewrite the ordinance(s) to make front yard gardens specifically prohibited. I am sure they are already discussing their strategy and will be working on their administrative steps in the next week or two.
When you submit a request for review of the landscaping ordinance, you might attach a signature list of other Oak Park residents (voters) who support the review and change of the ordinance to specifically allow for front yard gardens. Also, let your mayoral candidate know you are interested in being a part of helping Oak Park become more gardening friendly and would love to help shape any new ordinances that address the aesthetics of the city and which allow more flexibility for citizens to utilize their properties in ways that will enhance the quality of life for current and future residents.
The news media will be interested in knowing you have submitted your applications and will be eager to follow the response of the city to your applications and their follow-up responses by way of additional citations for some future infractions they have yet to find.
Sorry you are the target of the relentless machinery of your local government. Remember, you have many supporters who will help you through this. Stay calm, tend your garden (you have room for a few more raised beds if I am looking at the photos correctly), encourage others to add veggies to their existing front yard flower beds, and stay the course.
Good luck from Idaho!
Jul 16, 2011 @ 14:53:48
Beautifully stated!
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:19:07
thank you!
Jul 17, 2011 @ 00:05:07
oh man, i don’t think i have any spare energy to do any of that
maybe when things die down a bit, i will revisit the idea. deal?
Jul 17, 2011 @ 00:19:27
I only suggested you do some of those things now because the issues will not die down. I would wager a fair sum of money that the city is already making plans to do something or many things and will not let you rest until they extract however many pounds of flesh they think they deserve.
Most of the list of suggestions won’t require you to do too much. The main things you would be doing is creating a paper trail to use against the city when you need to file suit for harassment against if they keep pressing you for stupid things. It would also be to show the city and the media and the judge that you tried to work within the system to find an equitable solution but the Mayor and Mr. Rulkowski were not willing to find a good faith solution to the issues raised.
Take a couple of days to relax, pull a couple of weeds, fertilize your peppers, and dream of a vertical trellis and a small greenhouse to round out your urban farm.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 11:10:19
If you lived next door to me and tried to pull a stunt like that, I’d go out there and rip out all that crap myself. Eat all the vegetables you want, just grow them in the backyard! It’s akin to changing your car’s oil in your driveway or hanging your laundry out to dry in the front yard. Have a little class, young lady, and quit trying to push yourself and your ideas on everyone else.
Jul 17, 2011 @ 00:06:50
no comment necessary, i guess- i wouldn’t want to push my ideas onto you…
Jul 17, 2011 @ 00:10:28
It appears to me that someone is trying to push his/her ideas about what is appropriate onto Ms. Bass. If these things are so upsetting, I might suggest you sulk in your backyard and leave Ms. Bass to pursue her activities in peace.
By the way, I have most of my yard in garden now and by the end of next year ALL of the grass will be gone and the garden will be in the front, sides and back. And, as I have in the recent past changed my oil in the front yard and have been known to hang my laundry out to dry in places that are visible from the front yard, I suspect if you lived next to me you would have had a heart attack or two.
So, please show some class and allow other people to make choices that differ from yours and I believe these people will allow you the same courtesy.
Jul 18, 2011 @ 18:03:09
go, you!
Jul 17, 2011 @ 10:17:54
What if her backyard were unsuitable for growing that type of vegetables? You need a proper amount of light, drainage, etc. If you think Vegetables are on the same level as a junker car, you are smoking something for sure. (What’s in your backyard…?) The pictures on the news show a nice plant bed, nice grass, no weeds. She probably keeps her garden neater than most “grumpy old men”.
Jul 17, 2011 @ 20:35:26
Right. Just why do you think cities have ordinances that prohibit this sort of red neck activity? Most people — and by “most” I mean somewhat well over 50 percent of the population — want to live in an orderly, clean neighborhood that does not have some smart ass who says no one is going to tell him or her what to do hanging their laundry or growing rows of corn in the front yard. And, to answer the question posed by someone else, what if your backyard is unsuitable for agriculture? Tough. You should have thought of that before buying (but, of course, you kind of people don’t buy; you just rent for awhile and move on, usually not paying the the last couple of months’ rent). I am a conservative — a law and order conservative. I despise libertarians because all they think of is themselves without ever considering lawful rules and regulations.
Jul 18, 2011 @ 18:03:39
and go you too!!
Jul 17, 2011 @ 22:05:35
C. Krantz wrote the following:
“Right. Just why do you think cities have ordinances that prohibit this sort of red neck activity? Most people — and by “most” I mean somewhat well over 50 percent of the population — want to live in an orderly, clean neighborhood that does not have some smart ass who says no one is going to tell him or her what to do hanging their laundry or growing rows of corn in the front yard. And, to answer the question posed by someone else, what if your backyard is unsuitable for agriculture? Tough. You should have thought of that before buying (but, of course, you kind of people don’t buy; you just rent for awhile and move on, usually not paying the the last couple of months’ rent). I am a conservative — a law and order conservative. I despise libertarians because all they think of is themselves without ever considering lawful rules and regulations.”
Sounds like someone needs to eat more fresh organic vegetables, Mr./Ms. Krantz.
Your limited knowledge of how many cities are changing their old and out-dated laws and ordinances to adapt to evolving ideas is telling. Your references to certain numbers of people who want to live a certain way without referencing your sources is misleading. Your narrow definition of what an “…orderly, clean neighborhood…” is seems to have come from the same dictionary mentioned by Mr. Rulkowski. Your political position of being a law and order conservative should compel you to move to Canada in support of the Loyalists who did leave during the Revolutionary War or you should move to England in a show of support for the law and order those Yanks flouted when they rebelled.
My guess is you have learned your angry and rigid and severe list of the rules of Right and Wrong and would love to impose your rules on as many people as you can find – whether they agree with you or not. However, those of us who disagree with you will continue to question and challenge and amend the laws and ordinances in the cities we live to create the types of communities we want to live in.
Jul 17, 2011 @ 22:49:27
Yes. Your name says it all. Crackpot, but it least you have the common decency (whether intended or not) to live out in the sticks where you can lead your “Deliverance” redneck lifestyle without bothering too many people. Most of those people you do bother are like-minded cretins, so who cares? People living in metropolitan areas have usually gone past the sixth grade and don’t use a John Deere to plow up their front yards and plant okra.
Jul 17, 2011 @ 23:29:45
Actually, Mr./Ms. Krantz, my house and yard is in the business district of a town of about 25,000. I am 12 miles from our state capitol building, three blocks away from City Hall, two blocks away from our beautiful library, and across the street from our thriving Senior Citizen Center which received about 50 lbs of tomatoes and zucchini last year from my small garden.
Fortunately, I live in a community of people who have the decency to tolerate differences and who wander into my front yard (the gate is always open) to learn more about how to change their yards into gardens. Many often leave with some type of veggie or potted plant to start their garden transformation.
What I am grateful for is that you live far from me. At least the other crackpots I know in Idaho are too educated to subscribe to the narrow-mindedness you demonstrate and and too polite to the vitriolic diatribes you seem prone to use.
Jul 18, 2011 @ 12:36:10
C. Krantz writes: “Why do you think cities have ordinances that prohibit this sort of red neck activity?” The ordinance does not prohibit growing vegetables in the front yard, it just states plantings must be “suitable”.
What defines suitable? There are types of ornamental cabbage that people grow. Should those be outlawed? If someone has a butterfly garden, can that be shut down since someone else considers those native flowers weeds?
Had the politician who wrote that ordinance had the guts to specify “no vegetable gardens in the front yard” in the ordinance to begin with, he would have been tarred and feathered and the ordinance would not have passed.
Lastly, remember, those “red necks” you are insulting are a big part of the conservative base, and are some of the most law abiding people around. Especially those with God and Guns. I live in a neighborhood with million dollar homes (even controlled by an HOA), and you can see tasteful vegetable gardens dotting areas in the front yard. Many people, both affluent as well as those “pesky rednecks” are realizing the importance of removing pesticides from their diet. Expect to see more vegetable gardens in a neighborhood near you.
Jul 17, 2011 @ 22:20:04
Since when is food security not a conservative view? Any one who enjoys gardening knows that you put them where they will grow the best. Too bad your tender sensibilities have been offended. You would hate to be my neighbor – geese, chickies, ducks, kitties and a couple if Iggy’s running about and 2 large gardens – 1 in front, 1 in back to help with crop rotation and seasonal weather issues. Wah – quit complaining about others and mind you own business unless you want to do something constructive and help.
Jul 19, 2011 @ 12:30:02
http://oakparkhatesveggies.wordpress.com/2011/07/15/better-times-ahead-for-oak-park/?replytocom=3524#comment-form-guest
I live in London, a very large urban area, and we have quite a lot of people who are actively involved in growing food in an urban environment. We have allotment gardens from the turn of the century, when urbanisation began, to allow city dwellers to supplement their diets with fresh produce, eggs, chickens and rabbits. This became even more essential during the wars.
I have chickens in my back garden (no city ordnances here!) but no cockrels out of consideration of my neighbours. We have fresh eggs on a daily basis. I keep bees on my allotment, where we grow a wide variety of fruit and vegetables. I have a few tomatoes and courgettes that have appeared in the compost in my front garden, and I have left them grow.
Londoners have never been able to understand the American fascination with laundry drying on a line. You have far, far better weather for drying, and yet it is much more commonly done here. What is the issue with seeing someone’s underwear flapping in the breeze? We all wear it, or at least most of us do.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 12:05:38
Time to file a harassment charge against your city. This type of behavior has been allowed to grow and flourish long enough. Being the first one to stand up to oppression is never pretty but you do have support.
Jul 17, 2011 @ 00:07:51
thank you- and we have thought about such things. i guess we will wait and see how things unfold…
Jul 16, 2011 @ 12:11:47
I spent the month of June in the Swiss alp village of Saas-Fee, where I saw a remarkable practice being employed: growing vegetables in the (gasp!) front yard of many of the houses!
I know it’s perceived as a threat to institutional stupidity in the U.S. (where chemically-controlled, uniformly green grass lawns are considered a patriotic declaration of allegiance to the local sovereign), but the Swiss have found a beauty in a well kept, functional and pragmatic food-producing garden.
As vehicles are prohibited in Saas-Fee (save for a few electrical battery powered tiny craft), these garden lawns are even more prominent given they’re exposed to the scrutiny of pedestrian traffic. Time is slowed when walking, and I had great capacity to inspect the love and care shown in how gardens were maintained, nettings (to keep birds and rabbits off of some crops) deployed, and the arrangement of the different crops in an almost artistic statement.
As such, I’d have to conclude that any public bureaucrat who sees more beauty in a chemically bathed canvas of uniform greenness than the heterogeneity of an organic, groomed garden of multiplicity, is most likely a closet fascist who approaches their governance duties in much the same, uniform and totalitarian manner. I wish your community well in revealing and removing these anti-pragmatic, anti-aesthetic power-hungry sovereigns.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:21:48
wow- that was pretty well said!
Jul 16, 2011 @ 13:11:09
Tell your lawyer to read the 5th Amendment of the Constitution. It states that you CAN NOT be charged with the same crime twice once its been resolved…its called Double Jeopardy. Show that to city hall! They do not get their powers from within but FROM the Constitution and they HAVE TO abide by them no more or less than anyone else!
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:15:15
yeah- the problem is that unless your case has been tried and finished (by a judge or jury)- no double jeopardy rules apply. at least that’s my understanding…
Jul 16, 2011 @ 14:51:57
In today’s environmentally aware society, I encourage you to pursue the idea that your garden is more sustainable and earth friendly than a grass lawn. Particularly if your garden is being managed in an organic fashion (i.e. no chemicals etc). Show them that your are drastically reducing your storm water run-off and potential contamination of the storm drains and waterways. In Oregon owners are encouraged to use plants and natural vegetation in their yards instead of grass to encourage the capture of storm water thereby diverting it from storm drains. I can send you some information and guidance but you can obtain so much via internet. Look at some of the programs the City of Portland, Oregon had going.
Good luck in your fight because you are truly on the right side my dear. What they are doing is quite honestly demonstration that our governments are getting too large and too powerful.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:20:46
thanks- we have had soooooooooooo many people send us info about other places in the country that are more progressive and/or more socially aware. i think it is amazing that this has hit a nerve with so many people, but i think you are right about what you said. and we do garden organically!
Jul 16, 2011 @ 17:07:53
it’s sad to see our government harassing innocent citizens such as yourself. I just saw another story on Drudge about GA police shutting down a lemonade stand. The girls were trying to raise some money for a trip to a water park. I guess they need a business license first. At least most people still recognize that this is just plain sick. I wish you the best of luck, i hope this gets enough pressure on them, so whoever is calling these shots pulls their head out of their *** and remembers what it is to be human again.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 17:27:17
Yours is a state run by democrats. Do you really expect common sense from democrats? Democrats are corrupt two faced bigots that do nothing but impose on other people. If you want more freedom, if you want to have the ability to choose, and to live your life the way you see fit, move to a state not controlled by powermongering corrupt democrats.
Jul 16, 2011 @ 23:11:54
ya- i’m no so sure it’s one party or another. i think good people are good and corrupt people are corrupt, regardless of which party they belong to…
Jul 16, 2011 @ 17:40:06
Join your local Tea Party.
If there isn’t one, start one! Get Marian aboard!
One veggie bed, one dog tag at a time, we must take the country back.
Jul 17, 2011 @ 00:03:01
Here in Portland, Oregon we are encouraged to go ahead and plant vegetables and flowers even in the parking strip, and also it’s fine to plant
in the front yard. There are all kinds of garden designs, in planter boxes and no planter boxes. Dogs are loved, and one just gets a renewal notice if one is late paying for a license for a dog or cat. No worries. I hope it will be this way for you, soon!
Jul 17, 2011 @ 00:18:59
People from Saudi Arabia which is a desert come to the US to study and they see these lawns and think we are pretty crazy- manicuring a lawn in the heat and cutting it over and over…
Right now there is a huge drought in 14 states in the US that is worst than in the Dust Bowl days — global warming is on the rise and we need to get away from wasting gas on lawnmowers making more Carbon dioxide to heat up the planet.
Anything that a group of people do will make a difference– suddenly more people are gardening — that will add up.
Go for it..
j.
Jul 17, 2011 @ 01:29:16
She seems great, I got to meet her a couple of weeks ago. I adore her son- he’s a real go getter and has a big future in politics.
I would SO like to see her win!
Jul 17, 2011 @ 10:10:20
Good luck with everything! Can’t understand why the city thinks you are a villian. You are eating healthy, growing your own produce! The First Lady should be proud! You are growing plants, for goodness sake!
Jul 17, 2011 @ 23:02:47
Our Website Supports You Julie. God Bless
Jul 18, 2011 @ 18:06:47
thanks! -julie
Jul 18, 2011 @ 08:45:16
hi good luck with your court date. win for freedom of growing own food! on your mold or mustly oder under sink problem never use cholrox bleach it will open mold spores giving you a worse problem. i use vingar and h20 as a cleaning sloution whiping ever thing down. also check with evil epa on cleaning for mold area or musty oders. it is commom to have in a house at least once in a life time have an oder of some kind. good luck you can email me at edwardscarletta75@yahoo.com I will pray for you victory and plentiful garden harvesting.
Jul 19, 2011 @ 10:21:30
Have you ever considered going before your city council to discuss how to change/update the ordinance? Since they are the elected body, they should be able to work with you and could ultimately work to your benefit. A little research shows OP’s meetings are the 1st & 3rd Mondays of the month. Can’t hurt to at least try, right?
Jul 19, 2011 @ 11:06:39
maybe… i’m not too optomistic after what i hear went on there last night…
Jul 19, 2011 @ 11:48:41
ORDINANCES ARE NOT FOREVER- the town changes, the planet changes. I was thinking of you all in Oak Park today as I went outside to hang my laundry to dry. I have started to do this to save electricity espcially since we here have a 100 car freight train going to Buffalo every week loaded with coal to burn for electricity and to cut off one more mountaintop in Appalachia.
If everybody hung there laundry out, how many trailroad cars of coal could be saved.
How pretty is mountaintop removal? Compared to:
a vegetable garden.
a laundry line
a windmill- Rhembrandt painted a lot of windmills and we would not have those coal trains every week if we used renewable clean energy . Coal pollutes with mercury in animals and plants and humans..
how pretty is climate disaster?
Our town ordinances ought to reflect the times we live in.