General Landscape Information

UUFM Landscape Master Plan – Adopted May 17, 2021

All landscape projects should be coordinated through the Building and Grounds committee.

Landscape blocks:

1. North Block/Westerly @ 10,200 sf
2. North Block/Easterly @ 8,500 sf
3. Foundation north of building @ 1200 sf
4. West Block/NW of building @ 3,000 sf
5. West Block/West of building @ 2,400 sf
6. East Block/Front of Building @ 4,500 sf
7. Playground area @ 5600 sf
8. Parsonage @ 7800 sf
9. Community garden area @ 9,450
10. Rain garden area @ 6,000 sf
11. Memorial garden @ 400 sf
12. Paved Parking & Driveways (62 stalls, 6 handicapped; @16,250 sq. ft., 7250 sq. ft parking & 9,000 sq. ft. driveway)
13. Bluffland (not developable, but conservation planting advised)

Overall Design Principles

Focus on Edible/Sustainable Landscaping

• Native Plants
  • Where possible, choose native plants for landscaping
    • (https://www.dnr.state.mn.us/gardens/nativeplants/index.html)
    • (https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_PLANTMATERIALS/publications/ndpmcpu8157.pdf)
    • MN Native Landscapes
  • Edible Landscaping
    • Fruit/nut trees—hazelnuts, plums, apples…
    • Edible permaculture—juneberries, raspberries, elderberries, strawberries, asparagus, grapes, ramps, rhubarb, sorrel, scallions chives, echinacea, bee balm, creeping thyme….
    • Maintenance issues—harvesting, cleaning up fallen fruit, pruning
  • Low-maintenance lawns
    • Drought-resistant, slow-growing grasses
    • Lawns to Legumes
  • Accessible for people with mobility issues (including canes/walkers)

Landscape Master Plan

1. North Block/Westerly Half
   • Priority: Low
   • Design:
     • Replace with native/edible landscaping as appropriate
     • Continue to plant north lot line with native conifers to create living sound barrier
     • Confer with CFD to determine desirability of frisbee-golf holes
   • Maintenance Needed
     • Regular mowing (until replaced by other plantings)
     • Leaf raking in Fall
   • Other Considerations
     • Space on south edge should be planted in a way that permits overflow parking on the rare occasions when needed.

2. North Block/Easterly Half
   • Priority: Low
   • Design:
     • Replace with native/edible landscaping as appropriate
     • Continue to plant north lot line with native conifers to create living sound barrier
     • Confer with CFD to determine desirability of frisbee-golf holes
   • Maintenance Needed
     • Regular mowing (until replaced by other plantings)
     • Leaf raking in Fall
   • Other Considerations
     • Space on south edge should be planted in a way that permits overflow parking on the rare occasions when needed.

3. Foundation Planting/North of Building
   • Priority: Moderate
   • Design: ferns planted to absorb rainwater, minimize infiltration into building
   • Maintenance Needed: Minimal, once plantings are established

4. West Block/NW of Building
   • Priority: Moderate
   • Design: ferns planted to absorb rainwater, minimize infiltration into building
   • Maintenance Needed: Minimal, once plantings are established

5. West Block/West of Building
   • Priority: Low
   • Design:
     • Replace with native/edible landscaping as appropriate
   • Maintenance Needed
     • Regular mowing (until replaced by other plantings)
     • Leaf raking in Fall

6. East Block/Front of Building
   • Priority: High
   • Design
     • Plantings: The east face of the building provides structure; planting provides texture.  Bring out some of the colors in the stained glass window
       • Possible shrubs/planting: Currants, native honeysuckle (lonicera), high bush cranberry, honeyberry, juneberry, plum, black currant, gooseberry, black raspberry
     • Signage:
       • Unlighted, manual sign preferred.
       • Move lilies from around base of sign to display limestone base.
     • Maintenance Needed
       • Significant design & planting work
       • Once established, occasional pruning of shrubs.

7. Playground Area
   • Priority: High
   • Design
     • Add a free-standing porch swing (more for parents’ use than children’s, perhaps). Design space so it is not a mowing obstacle (e.g., wood chips rather than turf)
     • Restore/replace basketball hoop in parking lot; stripe lot for basketball court
   • Maintenance Needed
     • Needs to be weeded several times each summer for thistles and maple seedlings
     • Needs mulch every year or two to maintain safe surface

8. Parsonage
   • Priority: Moderate
   • Design
     • Planting for privacy screening from driveway
     • General sprucing up of plantings
     • Screen/enclose garbage cans (for parsonage and for church)
   • Maintenance Needed: None (renter responsibility)

9. Community Garden Area
   • Priority: Moderate
   • Design
     • Repair/replace rotting siding on shed
       • Spruce up planting around shed
     • Nursery/Stockpile Area
       • Locate to south of community garden
       • Space to stockpile leaves/mulch/compost and heal-in plants until needed.
     • Maintenance Needed:
       • Regular gardening by volunteers
       • Mowing/maintenance around nursery/stockpile
     • Other Information
       • Need to pay attention to appearance of nursery for neighbors to south
       • Need to maintain space for snow from snowplowing of parking area

10. Rain Garden Area

• • Priority: Moderate
  • Design
    • Non-native honeysuckle should be removed
    • Include some edible planting in the mix
  • Maintenance Needed: Occasional culling of undesirable volunteer plants

11. Memorial Garden
    • Priority: High
    • Design
      • Replace plastic arbor with more permanent structure
      • Budget for additional pavers and planting
    • Maintenance Needed: Regular weeding/raking done by volunteers

12. Paved Parking/Driveways
    • Priority: Moderate to High
    • Design
      • Circulation
        • Reinforce one-way traffic flow. Paint directional arrows on pavement.
        • Consider angle parking in direction of flow (but may reduce number of space—see Parking Standards)
      • Parking Lot
        • Monitor impact of hybrid delivery of services and congregational growth on parking needs.
        • Paving will need to be repaired in the next few years. Consider replacing asphalt with permeable surface that can be plowed in the winter
        • Overflow parking can use south edge of the two North lots.
      • Lighting
        • Streetlight in parking lot is city-owned. Consider impacts of taking over ownership (and converting to LED and perhaps limiting hours of use).
      • Solar EV charging station (perhaps with provision for low-voltage charging for portable electronics)—Explore costs & feasibility
    • Maintenance Needed:
      • Snowplowing/de-icing in the winter
      • Raking in the Fall
      • Striping/painting (directional arrows, basketball court)

13. Bluffland
    • Priority: Low
    • Design: Interplant with edible shrubs as appropriate
    • Maintenance Needed: Very little.  Remove diseased or dead trees as needed
    • Other Information: Removal of trees (even dead) requires consultation with City Forester.