All Corps Day, part 2

Corps member Stephen Peterka added fresh mulch to the Pillsbury Street Rain Garden at University Avenue and Pillsbury Street along the Central Corridor.All Corps Days are held three times a year (twice in the fall) and feature AmeriCorps members from different Conservation Corps programs collaborating on service projects, education, training and reflection on an environmental theme. Last month’s event focused on water quality in the Mississippi River and this month crew members turned their attention to urban sustainability along the Central Corridor and Hiawatha Light Rail. In the morning, representatives of Nice Ride and Transit for Livable Communities discussed bike sharing, other alternative transportation and pedestrian issues. Then crew members went on a tour of rain gardens in Saint Paul, led by Capitol Region Watershed District staff, and on a tour of green space along the Hiawatha Light Rail Line led by corps member Samantha Follis. After lunch they divided into two groups, to work on cleaning up rain gardens along the Central Corridor and doing a service project at Coldwater Springs along the Hiawatha Light Rail Line. The weather was damp but not a wash-out, and crews finished up by mid-afternoon, reconvening to share photos and reflect on their experience. All of these events were planned and led by AmeriCorps members who volunteered to organize the Corps Day.