This spring, RCC is helping to revive the community garden behind the Boys and Girls Club. Here’s what the garden looked like in March.
The city has since mowed the grass, and the great volunteers below helped weed the plots.
Below is the garden on April 7, ready to be planted. 
Can’t wait to see what these look like full of veggies!
Rosewood will have a few of our own home grown artists featured during 701 CCA’s self-led driving tour of Midlands-area artists. Check out photography like Brian Dressler’s rad picture of Columbia at right (and more!) during the driving tour open house April 21st and 22nd.
Also featured in Rosewood will be awesome crafters Kelly and J. Spencer Shull (312 S. Woodrow), mixed media artist Amanda Ladymon (413 S. Woodrow), and stone mason Jefferson Hubbell (905 Chevis). McClellan Douglas, Jr. (3735 Prentice), painter of the mural-in-progress below, is also on the tour. You don’t want to miss this opportunity to experience some great neighborhood artists! Look for a program and map in the April 18th edition of the Free Times and on the CCA website.
Here’s the full information from 701:
701 Center for Contemporary Art (701 CCA), Columbia’s nonprofit visual arts and artist-in-residence center, presents Columbia Open Studios on April 21st and 22nd, 2012, as part of the 6th Annual Indie Grits Festival. This free, self-led driving tour of 69 artists’ studios throughout Richland and Lexington Counties showcases the Midlands’ talented visual art community and allows the public to meet esteemed local artists and see their working process at their home studios. (Artists keep 100% of sales.) Join them for a festive Preview Party and Indie Grits Kickoff on Thursday, April 19, 7-11pm in the Grand Hall at 701 Whaley with a complimentary grits bar, cash bar, soul, pop + oldies DJs, and lots of DIY fun! $8 advance, $10 door, all ages.
It’s that time again! Music, beer, and seven thousand pounds of crawfish will be descending upon Rosewood Drive on May 5th, from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. for the 7th Annual Rosewood Crawfish Festival. Rosewood Community Council is sponsoring a table and we need volunteers! Do you have an hour? Two hours? All day? Please help out your neighborhood by volunteering to work at our table. Email jenna@rosewoodcommunity.com if you’re interested. Thanks!
Rosewood Park and Valencia Park will soon undergo major renovations to upgrade most of their amenities and add a few new ones. Click here to see updates on the progress.
Rosewood Park will be getting new benches, picnic tables, and new playground equipment. The picture at right shows how warped some of the picnic tables have become.
The parking lot (pictured above) will be paved this spring and a rain garden will be added to catch the additional water runoff from the parking lot.
The basketball court will be resurfaced and the lighting scheme will be completely redone. The picture at right is an example of the new lights.
You can view the Rosewood Park master plan here. (It may take an extra second to load.)
Valencia Park will be getting new playground equipment and two new picnic shelters–one along the side of the existing concessions building, and another one beyond the outfield. You can view the Valencia Park master plan here.
We hope the renovations will be completed before the end of 2012. Put on your party shoes, neighbors, because we can’t wait to celebrate our new parks!
Rosewood Community Council would like to thank SCE&G for the majority of funding for these renovations, the City of Columbia for their help in planning and implementing these plans and for securing additional grants, and Representative James Smith for his help in securing a State PARD grant.
You can view the Rosewood Park master plan here. (It may take an extra second to load.)
This spring, RCC is partnering with City Roots and the Greater Rosewood Merchants Association to provide a neighborhood outdoor movie series at City Roots.
April 21, 8:30 p.m., E.T.
May 19, movie TBD
June 16: Local movie marathon
The charge is $5 per person, with children 12 and under getting in free. We’ll be selling snacks, water, and adult beverages.
Be sure to bring a chair or blanket to sit on. See you there!
Thank you to our generous Rosewood sponsors!
Before the City Council Candidate Forum last week, we asked the candidates to provide a one page document outlining the three issues that would define their candidacy if elected. Responses were passed out at the forum, and are now published below.
Robert Bolchoz, At-large candidate
Daniel Coble, District 3 candidate
Jenny Isgett, District 3 candidate
Mike Miller, District 3 candidate
Cameron Runyan, At-large candidate
Check out these historical aerial photos of Rosewood. The photo at right was taken in 1938, before most of the housing was developed in the neighborhood. Click to zoom in for a better look. Owens Field Airport was originally designed as two runways that intersected, forming an X. Much of Owens Field airport covered what is now Owens Field Park.
What we know today as Rosewood was then mostly farmland, forest, and orchards, with a few farmhouses. What we now know as Edisto Court looks like it was entirely forest.
The second picture was taken in 1955. Again, zoom in for a better look. Notice how much of the farm area was developed as houses by this point. Also, many of the streets we know today have filled in. I think I see my house!
The large forested area on the right is the area that bounds Gills Creek.
Thanks to Herrick Brown, assistant botanist with S.C. DNR, for researching these pictures for us!
