Working bee this month

Docklanders are being asked to help Urban Reforestation move out of its Merchant St shop on Sunday, September 26.

The local sustainability group has benefitted from a period of free rent courtesy of Lend Lease but now the shop is being handed over to another deserving community group.

So Urban Reforestation must move its headquarters into nearby temporary storage until it gets established on new plot land it has been granted between Victoria Green and the Myer building in Victoria Harbour.

Founder Emily Ballantyne-Brodie said Urban Reforestation had accumulated a lot of furniture, retail stock and other material during its six-month occupation of the Merchant St shop.

“We’re really grateful to Lend Lease for the opportunity to get more established here in Docklands but we’ve got so much to move, we need the community to help,” she said.

Ms Ballantyne-Brodie said locals wishing to help should come to the shop at 71 Merchant St at 11am on the 26th.

“It won’t be all hard work.  And it will be a great chance for Docklanders to get to know each other,” she said.

Urban Reforestation hosted a successful community dinner on August 21 where dress code required guests to dress as fruit or vegetables.

Ms Ballantyne-Brodie said Urban Reforestation had been granted a small extension on moving the Docklands community garden from the front of Dock 5.

“There’s so much to do to prepare the new site and so much to organise that it is extremely difficult to contemplate moving the garden at this stage,” she said.

Ms Ballantyne-Brodie said Urban Reforestation was continuing to work through, with the relevant authorities, various issues affecting the new land.

Docklanders willing and able to help with the move on September 26 are asked to contact Emily in advance via email to [email protected]