Photo by Kara Missig For the Ferndale Downtown Development Authority’s new “Pimp Your Pot” program, Scott Wright, a member of the DDA’s design committee, created a flower pot out of a recycled toilet from his house. Pimp Your Pot is meant to add greenery to the downtown area and encourage business owners to express themselves creatively.

DDA launches
‘Pimp Your Pot’ program

By Jeremy Selweski
C & G Staff Writer

FERNDALE — Many of downtown Ferndale’s flower displays are old and in need of replacement, but now some businesses are looking at a cost-effective way of making Nine Mile Road and Woodward Avenue a greener place.

With its new “Pimp Your Pot” program, the Downtown Development Authority’s design committee is encouraging all downtown merchants to put their personality on the sidewalk by creating a “pimped-out” flowerpot for their storefront and helping the blossoms flourish all summer long.

The ultimate goal, said DDA Executive Director Cristina Sheppard-Decius, is to bring more greenery to downtown Ferndale. But it is also an opportunity for business owners to express themselves creatively.

“We’re looking to bring some artistic elements to the downtown,” she said. “This will hopefully add some flavor of what the city is all about. On display in front of our businesses, there will be living, growing plants that add to the vegetation of the downtown and give people a sort of buffer zone before they step into traffic.”

Pimp Your Pot is also a contest between business owners, and from 9 a.m. to noon on May 30, the DDA will hold an awards ceremony in Schiffer Park. There, winners will be announced in a variety of categories, including Best in Show, Best Look-Alike, the Ferndale Spirit Award, the Triple R Award — reuse, recycle and redesign — and for the flashiest flowerpot design, the Bling Bling Award.

In addition, the event features a perennial exchange program, a planting and pot design workshop, an organic growing demonstration, and “Seeds for the Future,” an activity for kids to design their own flowerpot.

Scott Wright, a member of the DDA’s design committee, said they’re especially looking to reward merchants who create the most off-the-wall, “outside-the-pot” designs.

“We basically want to let business owners’ imaginations run wild and be really creative with this,” he said. “People have come up with some really cool ideas so far, using things like a Monet painting, an old copy machine, wigs, eyeglasses, mannequins and bicycles.”

Wright himself has gotten in on the action as well by crafting a flowerpot out of a recycled, bright yellow, 1980s toilet bowl that he had lying around his house. The design will be displayed outside the DDA offices at 149 W. Nine Mile Road.

He explained that although many of downtown Ferndale’s flowerpots are more than 10 years old and deteriorating, the DDA does not have the budget to replace them. At its peak, the area featured over 90 attractive floral displays, but that number has dwindled to less than 20 in recent years.

“Replacing those flowerpots is very expensive — it usually costs between $1,000 and $1,500 per pot,” he said. “Then you have to buy soil, buy flowers, plant them and water them for the rest of the season.”

But as Wright pointed out, unlike the popular saying, in this case pimpin’ actually is easy. “We’re encouraging people to reuse and recycle items and show them that they can do this on a low budget,” he said. “When I’m all done with my pot, I’ll probably have spent about $12 on the whole thing. This is something that can make a huge impact on the downtown for very little money.”

And it appears that business owners have gotten behind the idea as well. Jim Monahan, owner of Twisted Shamrock, 276 W. Nine Mile, thinks that Pimp Your Pot is “something new, fresh, different, fun and unique to Ferndale. It will really perk the streets up. I hope the other businesses get on board with it.”

For his flowerpot, Monahan will create an ambitious design that incorporates an Irish theme and the Twisted Shamrock logo — and stands 7 or 8 feet tall.

“I want to make something that stands out and gets people’s attention,” he said. “I figure, if you’re going to do an event like this, then why not go over the top with it?”

Veronica Lujic, co-owner of State of the Art, 918 W. Nine Mile, is hoping to create a flower- pot based on a contemporary painting, but with the overall appearance of a three-dimensional sculpture.

“Business owners are crazy, creative people, so this was a perfect fit for us,” she said with a laugh. “It gives us a chance to express our creativity.”

Lujic added that she has been visiting other downtown businesses to encourage owners to participate in a little friendly competition with Pimp Your Pot.

“I think this is a fabulous way to promote your own business, add a little bit to the city and make an impact on the downtown,” she said. “It also gives people more things to see when they come down here.”

For Sheppard-Decius, it provides a chance for downtown Ferndale to reassert its status as a destination spot for residents who like a little greenery — and artistry — in their shopping experience.

“We’re well-known for our flower displays,” she said. “This is something that will add to the creativity and vitality of that and help make our community a little more green.”

For more information on Pimp Your Pot, call the Ferndale DDA at (248) 546-1632 or visit www. downtownferndale.com.