SEQUIM – It seems there’s trouble even in the paradise imagined by the cream of Clallam County’s gardeners.
That became apparent on Monday night when a flock of Master Gardeners filled the Sequim City Council meeting.
First Master Gardener Bill Wrobel presented a “beautification opportunity” to the city: a 4-acre demonstration garden, to be planted by the Masters near the band shell just north of Carrie Blake Park, 202 N. Blake Ave.
Last week, the Sequim Planning Commission heard about the proposed garden, and about the wheelchair-accessible paths, raised flower and vegetable beds and large classroom building it could have.
This place would be a lush haven within the city, and an ideal setting for weddings, festivals and holiday light displays, according to the Master Gardeners’ presentation.
The Planning Commission sent the proposal to the City Council with a unanimous recommendation.
Monday night, Mayor Walt Schubert pronounced it “a great idea.” So did Councilman Bill Huizinga.
Then they all hit a pothole.
Councilman Don Hall had heard that the Master Gardeners of Clallam County, a 26-year-old organization, suffers from declining membership, and that only a slim majority voted to move forward with the new garden plan.
The Master Gardeners already care for a couple of parcels: their 2.5-acre demo garden at 2711 Woodcock Road and the organic vegetable garden at Robin Hill County Park.
Both places are miles from downtown Sequim, and the public doesn’t use them as everyday getaways.
Still, this is not the time to add another project, some in the audience asserted during Monday’s meeting.
“I feel as though we’re being railroaded into this,” said Gail Nelson, a Master Gardener for the past decade.
When Schubert asked whether others agreed, several raised their hands.
Another group, seated across the aisle, raised hands to indicate their support for a new garden inside the city.
When Hall asked how many Master Gardeners had voted against the demo garden proposal, Wrobel replied that he didn’t want to get into “organizational dynamics.”
Even if dozens quit, he added, there will be enough Masters Gardeners to care for the new demo space.
But Balraj Sokkappa, a Bell Hill resident and Master Gardener since 2001, came forward to suggest that that much must be decided before the city and the gardeners can make progress.
