The Aspen Center for Environmental Studies (ACES) beat out two other local organizations for a $3,000 grant from Aspen Trail Finder.
ACES plans to use the money to build a children’s garden at Rock Bottom Ranch. The project received just over 1,100 votes, 55 percent of the total cast. The garden will include raised beds, orchard trees, a “bugs and birds” area and renewable energy features. But most importantly, it will give kids a chance to dig in the dirt and grow their own food.
“It’s invaluable for a young person to understand where their sustenance is coming from and have that answer not be the grocery store,” said Eliza Burlingame with ACES.
ACES will break ground on construction this spring, with the garden opening in the summer.
The runner-up in Aspen Trail Finder’s grant contest was Roaring Fork Outdoor Volunteers, with a plan to reroute the Lower Plunge Trail in the Hunter Creek Valley.
