All Posts in "Month: June 2019"

Healthy lawns and environment (naturally)

You can have your grass and be kind to the environment, too. Just go natural.

As pointed out by the City of Tacoma’s Environmental Services Department, whose work involves ways of helping neighborhoods and Puget Sound thrive, a healthy lawn is not only pleasing to the eye, but also eco-friendly with the right kind of mowing, watering and fertilizing. It happens through natural lawncare, which includes building healthy soil, smart uses of water, and reducing, if not eliminating chemical pesticides and fertilizers.

For instance, think of the lawn mower as a fertilizer machine. When mowing, leave the grass clippings on the lawn. A season’s worth of clippings equals one fertilizer application. They add water, nutrients and organic matter to the soil. The same is true for mulching soil with shredded leaves, evergreen needles or woodchips that help conserve moisture, suppress weeds and improve the soil. At the same time, always sweep grass clippings and any fertilizer residue off walkways and driveways. This simple step keeps unwanted nutrients from draining into waterways.

Protecting water is a key way that virtually everyone can be environmental stewards while maintaining their yards. Stormwater runoff from homes is a potential source of pollution in Tacoma’s Commencement Bay and Puget Sound, so it’s no wonder that marine water, rivers, lakes and groundwater are healthier when the use of chemicals is reduced and yard trimmings are recycled into free fertilizer.

Environmental Services has another suggestion for being natural—namely, the City of Tacoma’s Tagro line of nutrient-rich soil that’s made from biosolids harvested from the city’s wastewater treatment system. It’s highly rated as safe and effective by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and is available for order by calling the city at 253-502-2150. Its benefits for yards and the environment include:

  • Nutrients are released slowly. Plants use more of the nutrients and fewer are leached or carried away in water runoff into the environment.
  • Tagro-conditioned soil does a better job of retaining water. The more water the soil retains, the less watering by hose or sprinkler is necessary, which results in more natural water flowing into rivers and streams.
  • Plants and trees thrive, providing shade and less soil erosion near creeks and rivers, making the water healthier for fish and people.  

Speaking of water, efficient watering systems for yards can be seen in action at EnviroHouse, a City of Tacoma project that showcases green building and natural-landscaping methods. Exhibits include a fully integrated rainwater management system that funnels rainwater from roof gutters into rain barrels that are linked to provide water for use in the yard. The water-efficient system features low-evaporation spray heads and drip irrigation that applies water directly to roots to greatly reduce wasteful runoff, another plus for the environment. You can see the system up close at 3510 S. Mullen St., where EnviroHouse is open to the public Wednesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and on weekends from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Its phone number is 253-573-2425.

Finally, weeds are the unwanted guests of lawns. But try not to evict them at the expense of environmental health. Dig or pull them out, roots and all. This is way more time-consuming and taxing physically than using herbicides, but it’s the most environmentally friendly method.

srmedia by — June 6, 2019 in Spotlight
Franke Tobey Jones building new skilled-nursing and memory care community

Franke Tobey Jones is in the final months of building a nearly 65,000 square-foot skilled-nursing and memory care building on the retirement community’s campus in North Tacoma.

The building, which is scheduled to open in July, will be home to 43 skilled-nursing residents on the top floor and 28 memory care residents on the lower level.

“This will not be your grandma’s nursing home,” said Christine Hall-Werner, senior director of marketing for Franke Tobey Jones. “One of the main reasons is because it will not look or feel like your standard institutional skilled-nursing facility. The new healthcare center and memory care community” will have “small pods of rooms clustered around open living spaces where residents and family can enjoy quality time together. And nearly all the rooms will be private suites.”

Other features that Hall-Werner said will set the new facility apart include:

• Each resident room will house a locked cabinet where the resident’s medications will be kept. There won’t be medication carts in hallways or a typical nursing station.

• Meals will be prepared on-site and served in dining rooms.

• Patios, abundant windows, plants and water features for a home-like feel.

The building’s architecture is classic Tudor style, an extension of the extensive campus’ look and feel, Hall-Werner said.

A capital campaign in support of the new addition to Franke Tobey Jones has a goal of $5 million. Leaders of the campaign, which started in 2017, announced in April a $1 million donation from Whisper Foundation, part of the Gary E. Milgard Family Foundation. The foundation awards grants to organizations that work to improve quality of life through health and other services.

Additional information about the campaign and suite reservations is available at 253-752-6621 and www.franketobeyjones.com.

Established in 1924, Franke Tobey Jones is a not-for-profit organization that also offers independent and assisted-living communities. Also opening this summer will be a new 16-unit luxury apartment building for independent living. The 47,000 square-feet structure will include underground parking and 10 units with views of Puget Sound.

The apartments, half of which were sold by April, range in size from 1,300 to 1,575 square feet, with monthly rents of $4,600 to $5,000 and an entrance fee between $195,000 and $250,000.

srmedia by — June 6, 2019 in Personal Finance/Consumers

Gig Harbor’s senior center has lost the roof over its head and is looking for a new one.

For the past 10 years, the Senior Club, as it’s called, occupied part of the Jim and Carolyn Milgard Family HOPE Center. But the Peninsula School District, through a bond measure that voters approved in February, enabled the district to buy the building for $12.8 and convert it into an elementary school that will open this fall. The Boys and Girls Club, which also occupied the building previously, will continue to use part of it for some of its activities, but there’s no room for the senior center.

“We’re losing a lot if we can’t find a new home,” said Betty Lillienthal, one of the leaders of an effort to prevent that.

As the end of May approached, a church had offered some temporary space but not long-term, and the Senior Club was going to be homeless by June 20. Senior center advocates are working with the city, Pierce County, PenMet Parks District, and other civic groups, as well as individuals, to come up with a new location.

Mayor Kit Kuhn, in a report to citizens in March, said he and the City Council want “to make sure that (the seniors’) needs are met.”

The club has been used to having exercise rooms, a large flat-screen TV with DVD and CD players for exercise videos and WII games, space for bingo and card games, billiards, pickleball, arts and crafts, and classes about computers and health-related topics. The center also has hosted footcare clinics and served as a Catholic Community Services mealsite for hot lunches.

The Senior Club, with members paying annual fees to join, was formed in October 2009 in conjunction with the Boys and Girls Club’s grand opening of the Milgard building.

Lillienthal described the senior center as a home away from home for its 120 seniors to gather and socialize.

“This is so hard, not knowing what’s going to be on the table,” she said in May, but she added that “we hope to have some big news” by the end the month.

srmedia by — June 6, 2019 in News