Hermes & Aphrodite

Hermaphroditus

Greek Mythology, a son of Hermes and Aphrodite, with whom the nymph Salmacis fell in love and prayed to be forever united. As a result Hermaphroditus and Salmacis became joined in a single body that retained characteristics of both sexes.

Hermaphrodite

Noun, a person or animal having both male and female sex organs or other sexual characteristics, either abnormally or as the natural condition.

Toad Lily

Flowers & Photography by Lisa Bourey

Durango’s Downtown Bicycle Racks

A special thanks to those that made this program a success, starting first and foremost with Durango's Multimodal Coordinator Amber Blake, and these participating businesses:

Carvers Brewing Company

Mountain Bike Specialists

Maria’s Bookshop

Gazpacho’s Cantina

Successful program goes beyond experimental stage

From the Editorial Pages of the Durango Herald

November 9, 2011

Just as Durango got its first taste of real winter weather, the city put its on-street bicycle racks away for the season. More than anything, though, that extra bit of attention to the racks served to highlight what a popular and successful program the on-street bike parking has become.

And why not? Everybody wins.

Moving the racks for the winter is simple common sense. Plowing snow downtown is a priority, and if the racks were left in place, they would be in the way.

It also stands to reason that usage would decline. While Durango has more than a few hardy souls who ride their bikes year-round, that is not nearly the number who enjoy riding in the warmer times. And with that, the racks will return in May.

All this started as a pilot program in 2010. The first on-street rack was in front of Carver Brewing Co. That proved so successful that three more were added in June in front of Maria’s Bookshop, Mountain Bike Specialists and Gazpacho’s Cantina.

The program is a public-private partnership. Businesses apply to the city for a rack. If approved, a business pays a $200 per year capital improvement fee for five years, which largely offsets the $1,300 cost of the rack. The business also pays for the installation of the rack and pays the city what it could have expected to collect from the parking meter and associated fines. Any needed replacements are covered by the city.

The public response to the racks has been overwhelmingly positive. Merchants and their customers like them. Bike riders have a convenient place to park, and the on-street location of the racks keeps the sidewalks clear for pedestrians. Downtown parking may even benefit. And all that comes at little or no cost to the taxpayers.

For merchants, the benefit is obvious. More of their customers can park right in front of their business. That is especially important for downtown as a whole as the demographics of bike riding expand to include more and more of the public. Driven by concerns for the environment, fitness, traffic and increasingly economic, that trend can be expected to continue.

Another possible gain could be to motorists. Installing bike racks on the street eliminates a parking space and, in that sense, reduces available parking. Without the convenience of the racks, however, it is certainly possible that two or more of the 16 riders who can park their bikes in each rack would have driven instead. If so, the net effect could be to bring fewer cars to downtown. It would be a minor effect, but one that could be at least as meaningful as the loss of one space and one that could help ease parking.

Having the racks in the street also is much more orderly than having bicycles locked up willy-nilly to parking meters, trees or what-have-you. It makes walking the sidewalks easier and safer. And it contributes to an over-all sense of a more orderly downtown.

Increasing the bicycle ridership also affects traffic. In some areas – north Main comes to mind – that can be a problem for riders and drivers alike. But downtown, the effect is to calm traffic a bit in an area where that is welcome. The speed limit on Main Avenue downtown is 25 mph, but often there is little reason or opportunity to go that fast. Which is just as well; drivers also are watching for pedestrians and beckoning storefronts.

The city is taking applications from business for bike racks for next year. Public comments are welcome as well.

Durango’s downtown bicycle racks are a happy example of how little things can make a big difference. It is an effort to applaud.

Durango Botanical Society Flowers

Durango Takes a Giant Stride Towards a Botanical Garden

From the Denver Botanical Society Blog - Posted October 25, 2011

By Panyoti Kelaidis
Denver Botanic Gardens Senior Curator and Director of Outreach, Panayoti Kelaidis is internationally known as a plantsman, botanist, and horticulturalist and is the one man who has done the most to transform horticulture in the Rocky Mountain states. He has lectured all over the world, and conducted plant exploration trips to Asia, Europe, South Africa, South and North America, and he has also written extensively.

The new Botanical Society Garden at the Durango Library

People are always asking me “What exactly do you do in the way of ‘Outreach’ “? Well….I travel to places like Durango, where the Durango Botanical Society ran me through my paces a few weeks ago! This redoubtable group is only a few years old, but they already boast a sizable membership and monthly meetings. Do go back and click on the hyperlink. I think you will be impressed with their activities (and their wonderful website).

They have also spearheaded the creation of an ambitious garden at the very impressive Durango Library. The garden at this site was designed by Lisa Bourey, an exceptional gardener and inspired designer. You can see a few pictures I took at the marvelous garden she and her husband Drew have created and maintain in a charming neighborhood of that wonderful town. I realize I am full of extravagantly enthusiastic adjectives: Durango does that to one. It is really a gem of Colorado cities.

Salvia greggii and Salvia darcyi in new garden

The first plants were planted earlier this summer and they are looking GOOD, I must say. They are, of course, Plant Select choices (as are many of the first plants installed thus far), but there is far more to this garden than just these! I am very impressed with the range of plants I saw in gardens in and around Durango. They seem to be able to grow most everything we do in Denver (no mean feat with their higher altitude and chill winters). Many plants look better there–their trees don’t seem as stressed, and they seem to do very well with more boreal, cool loving plants due to their cooler nights. It seems to really be an ideal climate for many plants.

Durango Botanical Society dignitaries at ribbon cutting

Here you can see some of the principal players who have brought this Society into being, including the President (Cindy Smart, at the far right), looking smart indeed with her chic outfit and gorgeous hair! Darrin Parmenter stands next to her, one of the most dynamic Extension Agents I have ever met (and they are a dynamic lot by and large). Looking leftward is the profile of Jeff Wagner, whom I have known nearly three decades, and one of Colorado’s premier plantsmen. Lisa Bourey, the designer, is left of him. The young man on the scooter is her proud son Axel! And I do not recognize the rest of the rogues gallery, except to say that Societies such as their’s take an extraordinary amount of time to nourish and guide.

They are to be commended for achieving so much in such a short period of time. Botanical gardens are generally successful only in cities of half a million or more. To imagine and create the first phase of a botanic garden in a city of only 16,000 people is bold indeed! If it were not Durango, I might be a tad more dubious!

Traveling to lecture at places like Durango is a great pleasure for me. I received a royal welcome and loved sharing the wisdom of Denver Botanic Gardens, but I feel as though I have gained more knowledge than I imparted. The Four Corners, after all, is really the historical wellspring of our entire West, with Mesa Verde looming nearby. The snowy La Platas gazing down from the north and the vast reaches of Canyonlands and even the Rio Grande valley not far away suggest to me that this is indeed a major botanical center.

I believe their Society has much to offer Durango–expanding that great city’s conservation footprint and cultural depth, and proffering an important touristic venue into the bargain. We at Denver Botanic Gardens salute you, DBS!