Skyline Community Garden (formerly known as H.E.A.L.T.H for Youths Skyline Community Garden)
Bylaws (Revised March 24, 2023)
GARDEN BYLAWS
Date Ratified 3/24/2023
A. Name and Location
The name of the garden is Skyline Community Garden. The garden is formerly known as the H.E.A.L.T.H for Youths Skyline Community Garden.
The garden is located at 40-66 Prospect Avenue between Harvard Avenue and Clyde Place. For the purposes of this document, the garden will be referred to as “the Garden.” Note, there is an expansion of the garden set for 4/2023. While the overall garden will hereby be referred to as Skyline Community Garden, given that it has come to be known as H.E.A.L.T.H for Youths Skyline Community, that name will be retained in certain parts of the garden as a remembrance of the history of the garden. Additionally, the expansion of the garden will be known as the H.E.A.L.T.H for Youths Garden Annex with signage thus represented, and the Compost System and Food Scraps program will also continue to bear the name of H.E.A.L.T.H for Youths.
B. Mission
The purpose of the Garden (formerly known as the H.E.A.L.T.H for Youths Skyline Community Garden” is to maintain an active community of garden friends and members who grow flowers, vegetables and herbs. We also engage in life skill training, workshops, and gardening programs. We are supported, licensed and insured by GreenThumb.
C. Membership (check all that apply, and only those that apply)
C.1. Eligibility
✓ The Garden does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, gender, age, sexual orientation, physical ability, nationality, or religion.
❏ Individuals must be 18 years of age to join as an individual
❏ Children under the age of 18 may join with a family member or guardian over 18 or a school or community group
C.2. Process for Joining
A person interested in becoming a member of the Garden shall follow this procedure:
❏ Contact our (circle one): Garden Coordinator
❏ Complete a total of 15 volunteer hours over the course of 6 months
❏ Attend 2 garden meetings
❏ Attend a new member orientation
❏ Attend 2 hours of garden open hours
❏ Attend 5 hours of a garden event
❏ Sign a copy of the bylaws
C.3. Membership Levels
The Garden has 1 level of membership:
1. Level 1 (or standard) Membership
a. Key/code to the garden: ⏭ NO
b. Voting rights: ⏭ YES
c. Number of hours required to hold open hours and/or volunteer in the garden: number: 15 every ⏭ YEAR/SEASON
d. Meeting attendance requirement: ⏭ NO
e. Committee requirement: ⏭ NO
C.4. Garden Plots
C.4.A Communal Plots
This garden offers members access to communal garden plots: ⏭ YES
In addition to the requirements outlined in Section C.3., the Garden requires the following:
Rights of communal plot members:
❏ Participate in crop planning (i.e. the decision about what to plant)
❏ Tend to the plot(s) - planting, weeding, trellising/staking
❏ Enter the garden at any time to tend to the plot(s)
❏ Harvest from the plot(s) to take home
❏ Access to communal tools
❏ Access to compost, soil, lumber etc., produced by the Garden, donated to the Garden, or supplied to the Garden by GreenThumb
Responsibilities of communal plot members:
❏ Upkeep of the plot(s) - this includes weeding, cleaning out the plot at the end of the gardening season.
❏ Should a plot be left unattended for more than 4 weeks and/or weeds/pests take hold in or around the plot, the plot holder(s) will be asked to rectify the situation within a month or their membership will be forfeited. May also include protocol for if plot holders are out of town for an extended period of time.
❏ Communal plots are managed by the group and the group decides what to plant.
C.4.B Individual Plots
This garden offers members individual/family garden plots: ⏭ NO
C.5. Meetings
Does the Garden group have an annual meeting? ⏭ YES
The garden has an annual meeting the third Sunday of April of every year to plan for the upcoming year.
Does the Garden have regular membership/general meetings?
⏭ NO
C.6. Process for revoking membership
The Garden reserves the right to deny or revoke membership to any person or people
whose behavior is deemed:
✓ In violation of the Garden rules, bylaws, and/or GreenThumb License Agreement
✓ In violation of city, state, and/or federal law
❏ Disruptive to the causes of the garden
❏ Destructive to or theft of the garden property, plants, tools, furniture, plots, and amenities
❏ Disruptive or abusive of the peace and wellbeing of the garden, its members, and/or the public: verbal altercations, hate speech, sexual harassment, etc.
Revocation of membership for any of these violations occurs through this process:
❏ If the gardener violates the garden rules and/or bylaws three times, this is grounds for expulsion
❏ Other: Reinstatement is at the discretion of the majority of the garden group
D. Garden Governance (check all that apply, and only those that apply)
D.1. Garden Leadership
The Garden is governed by:
⭕ Non-hierarchical governance structure
Do these leadership positions have terms? ⏭ NO
Do these leadership positions have term limits? ⏭ NO
D.2. Meetings of the Garden Leadership
Can the Garden Leadership as described in section D.1. meet outside of
regular/membership/general meetings?
⏭ YES
The Garden’s Leadership meetings are organized as follows:
❏ Meetings occur every ⏭ month
❏ Any member in good standing can attend and observe a Garden Leadership meeting
❏ A minimum number of members of the Garden Leadership are required if there is going to be a vote of any kind
❏ Announcements about upcoming meetings are shared:
❏ At the previous meeting
❏ Notes from the meetings are shared:
❏ On the garden’s email list
D.3. Garden Committees
TO BE DETERMINED AT A FUTURE DATE IF NECESSARY
E. Decision-Making
PLEASE SEE ABOVE.
F. Conflicts and Disputes (check all that apply, and only those that apply)
The Garden handles conflicts and disputes as follows:
❏ Consult the garden rules and bylaws for an answer, and ensure that the subject of the dispute does not break any city, state, or federal laws.
❏ Conflicting parties must resolve the conflict amongst themselves
❏ If a garden member or volunteer accuses another member of misconduct, they should have proof in the form of another witness, photos, video, etc. Should they not have proof, the Garden Leadership will maintain a record of the incident(s).
❏ If the conflicting parties cannot resolve the conflict, the disagreement must be brought to a special committee within the garden or the garden’s network that is specifically designated to handle conflict.
G. Finances (check all that apply, and only those that apply)
The Garden handles finances as follows:
G.1. Account
❏ H.E.A.L.T.H for Youths, Inc. purchases items for the garden as needed.
G.2. Purchasing Proposals
❏ Any garden member can propose the purchase of a particular item.
❏ Garden funds may not be used for personal items.
G.3. Reporting
❏ A financial report including income and expenses will be shared at all general/membership meetings.
❏ Financial records will be shared with members upon request.
❏ An annual budget will be prepared by the Garden Leadership and presented for approval by the membership once per year
❏ Any financial decisions made and executed will be announced at the following general/membership meeting.
❏ Other: _________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________
G.4. Fundraising
❏ Any person can bring up a grant opportunity to the general membership and/or Garden Leadership
❏ Any garden member can participate in the grant application process.
❏ All grants for the garden are to be written and managed by:
⏭ Garden Leadership
❏ Garden members may propose fundraising ideas (markets, yard sales, events, grants, online fundraisers, etc.)
❏ To the Garden Leadership
H. Amending the Bylaws (check all that apply, and only those that apply)
Garden members may propose changes to the bylaws as follows
❏ Over email to the garden membership
Changes to the bylaws will be announced to the garden membership:
❏ Over email
I. Garden Rules
This section is for any rules that the Garden asks all members and visitors to follow - for example on harvesting (or not harvesting) produce, use of space for events, supervision of pets, etc. Please be sure rules are not in conflict with the Parks sign on the garden fence.
J. Agreement and Gardener Signatures
Establishing bylaws should be a collective process, one that allows a garden group to develop a shared sense of responsibility and stewardship. Garden members can sign and date below to indicate their involvement in these processes and support for the resulting bylaws. Subsequent members should sign and date below to indicate that the have read and agree to uphold a group’s bylaws.
PRINT NAME SIGNATURE and DATE
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