Lakewood Flower Shop News
Modesto has nation’s largest garden club. It shows in 140 downtown flower pots - The Modesto Bee
Tuesday, December 04, 2018Sixth-graders Varun Murali of Lakewood School and Joseph Yakligian of Fair Oaks School topped the countywide bee for elementary students. They will compete at the state bee in Stockton. Fifth-grader Taetum Cardenas of Connecting Waters Charter School won honorable mention and will go to Stockton if one of the others cannot. A sampling of the words the county champions had to spell: apiarist, idiosyncrasy, gasconade and intermittent. The county’s top junior high spellers were eighth-grader Alisha Chakravarty of Turlock Junior High School and seventh-grader Gurbaani Pannu of Prescott Junior High School. They will compete in the state bee in San Rafael. The alternate is seventh-grader Amay Parmar of Prescott. Some of the words they nailed: sacrilegious, deleterious, supercilious and magnanimity. The Stanislaus County Education Foundation and the county Office of Education put on the bees. Foster Farms aids Paradise Foster Farms donated $25,000 worth of its cooked chicken products to families affected by the massive Camp Fire in Paradise. The Livingston-based company is working with the Community Action Agency of Butte County and several food banks to deliver about 24,000 servings. “Community involvement has been a Foster Farms value since 1939,” CEO Laura Flanagan said in a news release. “As a California company, we feel a responsibility to step forward and support our fellow Californians in times of need.” ... https://www.modbee.com/latest-news/article222463475.html
School Kids Plant Trees, Flowers To Improve Environmental Health
Tuesday, October 30, 2018Five new trees and some native perennial flowers are being planted on the sidewalk in front of William Paca Elementary School on North Lakewood Avenue.“They learn a lot about the life cycle of plants and animals,” said teacher, Adreon Hubbard. “And some of the students have raised monarch butterflies with me in the classroom from milkweed we grew in the schoolyard.”The Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore is behind the project designed to reduce stormwater runoff into the harbor.“We’re really trying to drive home the point that what we do upstream from the harbor has a direct impact downstream,” said Leanna Wetmore of the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore. “So if we’re working in the neighborhood on cleaning and greening issues, everything we do up here can impact the harbor eventually.”The Baltimore Tree Trust is part of the Healthy Harbor Initiative which will also beautify the neighborhood.“So this area gets a ton of runoff because of all of the concrete,” said Mark Conway, executive director of the Baltimore Tree Trust. “So these tree pits will help to capture some of that water and help make this community look a little better.”The Waterfront Partnership’s goal is to improve the social and environmental fabric... https://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2018/10/26/school-kids-plant-trees-flowers-to-improve-environmental-health/
Supreme Court Vacates Washington Florist Discrimination Case
Tuesday, July 17, 2018Arlene’s Flowers were liable. The court also found that Stuzman’s First Amendment rights were not violated.Earlier this month the Supreme Court ruled 7-2 in favor of a Lakewood, Colorado baker who refused to make a wedding cake for a gay couple.Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote for the majority that the state’s civil rights commission showed “elements of a clear and impermissible hostility toward the sincere religious beliefs” of the Christian baker.The narrow focus of the Supreme Court ruling left an open question of how it would affect similar cases. The case involving the Colorado baker did not settle the law about whether a business can refuse business to a gay couple, though civil rights advocates remain optimistic.“To be clear, the court made no indication the lower courts ruled incorrectly and made no decision on the case’s merits,” said James Esseks of the ACLU of the decision.“We are confident that the Washington State Supreme Court will rule once again in favor of the same-sex couple, and reaffirm its decision that no business has a right to discriminate.”Last week, the Oregon Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal of a case involving a bakery that refused to make a wedding cake for a lesbian couple.The state’s Bureau of Labor and Industries ordered Aaron and Melissa Klein to pay damages to Rachel and Laurel Bowman-Cryer after concluding the Christian bakers violated Oregon’s discrimination law.The Kleins are represented by attorneys from the First Liberty Institute, who believe they can appeal their case to the high court.Washington Governor Jay Inslee said the Supreme Court decision regarding Arlene’s Flowers “does not surprise us or cause us any concern.”“Unlike the recent decision in the Colorado case, in Washington there was never any indication of religious bias or hostility in our pursuit to protect consumers from discrimination.”Like this:Like Loading... ... https://www.courthousenews.com/supreme-court-vacates-washington-florist-discrimination-case/
Justices won't hear case of anti-gay-marriage florist
Tuesday, July 03, 2018Richland shop, Arlene's Flowers, in 2013.Early this month, the Supreme Court issued a limited ruling in favor of Jack Phillips, the proprietor of Masterpiece Cakeshop in Lakewood, Colo.In an opinion by Justice Anthony Kennedy, the 7-2 majority found that comments by a member of the Colorado Civil Rights Commission displayed an anti-religious bias — depriving Phillips of the respect and consideration his beliefs deserved. The commissioner had said that "religion has been used to justify all kinds of discrimination throughout history," including slavery and the Holocaust.Kennedy wrote that such disputes "must be resolved with tolerance, without undue disrespect to sincere religious beliefs, and without subjecting gay persons to indignities when they seek goods and services in an open market."Washington courts will now review the florist's case for similar issues, but it's unclear whether their analysis will change. The state's high court held in its ruling floral arrangements do not constitute protected free speech, and that providing flowers to a same-sex wedding would not serve as an endorsement of same-sex marriage.Both Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson and Stutzman's attorneys said the U.S. Supreme Court's action was appropriate in light of the Masterpiece Cakeshop decision."The Washington State Supreme Court now has the job of determining whether the U.S. Supreme Court ruling affects this case," Ferguson said in a written statement. "I am confident they will come to the same conclusion they did in their previous, unanimous ruling upholding the civil rights of same-sex couples in our state."But Stutzman's attorney, Kristen Waggoner, senior counsel at the religious liberty law firm Alliance Defending Freedom, said the Masterpiece Cakeshop decision should prompt an overturning of Stutzman's case. She cited what she described as the attor... http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2018/jun/25/justices-wont-hear-case-anti-gay-marriage-florist/
Florist trades LoHi for Wash Park - BusinessDen
Tuesday, October 24, 2017Hornstein’s favorite flowers of the moment are dahlias, which are sourced form Arrowhead Dahlias in Platteville and CityGal Farms in Lakewood. She began arranging flowers part time at a floral shop while attending the University of Colorado Boulder.Now the company has grown to a staff of three full-time employees with 20 contracted workers.Hornstein said weddings make up 75 percent of the business, and can cost $5,000. Plum Sage does about 130 weddings annually. The company also decorated the Denver Debutant Ball at the Brown Palace Hotel last winter and will again this year.Another florist, Flower Power, is moving one block west of its current location at 2101 E. Virginia Ave. this November.About the author: Lynn Yen View all posts by Lynn YenLynn is a reporter who covers the restaurant industry, startups and real estate. She is a graduate from the University of Nebraska. She can be reached at Lynn@BusinessDen.com. http://www.businessden.com/2017/10/02/florist-gets-air-new-wash-park-digs/
Better Than Roses - The Newtown Bee
Sunday, February 10, 2019The Sunshine Bouquet Company began in New Jersey before branching out to Florida and Columbia, which allowed “Sunshine to provide efficient, rapid delivery to the United States.”Ms Brisch said Big Y also offers flower bouquets and potted plants from local farms, like Cavicchio Greenhouse in Sudbury, Mass. Since Big Y is headquartered in Springfield, Mass., its local farms are located in Massachusetts or Connecticut. Newtown Big Y Store Director Angelo Soto shared a list of all of its local farms, and those include Casertano’s Greenhouse in Cheshire, Connecticut Valley Flower in Hamden, Geremia Greenhouse in Wallingford, and Grower Direct in Somers.“There are so many local things to chose from,” said Ms Brisch.From choosing to support a conscientious company to finding ways to support local farms there is more to consider than just the color of a bouquet’s assorted flowers.Off-Season OptionsConnecticut-grown flowers can be hard to find in the winter.Natalie Collette of The Gardenist of Norwalk offers floral arrangements and designs, along with garden design support and maintenance, according to her Facebook page, The Gardenist. She mostly sells her flowers to local florists and people who contact her directly. A farmer florist, Ms Collette said she has private properties where she plants seasonal flowers, all organically. She harvests and creates bouquets along with maintaining a dahlia farm in New Haven. Growers in Connecticut, unless they have a greenhouse, do not grow flowers out of season, she observed. This makes it harder for local shops to maintain locally grown flowers in the winter months.When asked for ideas for alternative Valentine’s Day presents, Ms Collette recommended gifting a living flower arrangement or foraging for a bouquet of seasonal elements. Potted plants from a nursery also provide year-long enjoyment.“If it is a perennial, you can enjoy the plant from when you purchase it [until you] plant it in the spring,” said Ms Collette, who is currently selling hous... https://www.newtownbee.com/better-roses/02102019
Third-generation owner seeks to turn retail plant shop into lifestyle brand - Crains New York Business
Sunday, February 10, 2019My family owns the West 96th Street building and has considered selling it, but we want to keep a retail presence there. PlantShed needs more space for production, though. We might move offices to New Jersey—where we recently got a warehouse—Long Island City or further uptown. There are stresses on the business, but we're making it work. When I took over, I realized we could not just be a retail flower store. The numbers wouldn't support it. That's why we pursued the idea of putting cafés in our shops. Retail stores also need to be a lifestyle brand.Our goal is to spread our love of plants and flowers to people around the city and beyond. I've hired employees to facilitate partnerships and make our stores young and hip. Through the cafés, we have created a way for people to gather and be surrounded by nature. Those who come in every morning for a cup of coffee think of us when they need to buy a bouquet of flowers. We want to foster community and build a local attachment to our brand.I'm a partner in Haven, a boutique hotel in Montauk, which is a separate business from PlantShed. In the past few years, we have blown Haven out with plants, putting custom-made hanging baskets in the walkways and tropical houseplants in the hotel rooms. Guests love it. Now I am working on a hotel concept. I'm trying to find a location for a farmstead, greenhouse and inn in the Hudson Valley or the Catskills. PlantShed would own it, and it would be something really unique, bridging biophilia and hospitality.It's definitely something we could bring to New York City or another city down the line. We have found that incorporating plant life in an urban setting is appealing to people. We assume these travelers want a city vibe, rather than a country or tropical feel. So it would be a matter of incorporating plants and flowers in a way that accentuates the look and feel of a city. https://www.crainsnewyork.com/asked-answered/third-generation-owner-seeks-turn-retail-plant-shop-lifestyle-brand
Third-generation owner seeks to turn retail plant shop into lifestyle brand
Tuesday, February 05, 2019My family owns the West 96th Street building and has considered selling it, but we want to keep a retail presence there. PlantShed needs more space for production, though. We might move offices to New Jersey—where we recently got a warehouse—Long Island City or further uptown. There are stresses on the business, but we're making it work. When I took over, I realized we could not just be a retail flower store. The numbers wouldn't support it. That's why we pursued the idea of putting cafés in our shops. Retail stores also need to be a lifestyle brand.Our goal is to spread our love of plants and flowers to people around the city and beyond. I've hired employees to facilitate partnerships and make our stores young and hip. Through the cafés, we have created a way for people to gather and be surrounded by nature. Those who come in every morning for a cup of coffee think of us when they need to buy a bouquet of flowers. We want to foster community and build a local attachment to our brand.I'm a partner in Haven, a boutique hotel in Montauk, which is a separate business from PlantShed. In the past few years, we have blown Haven out with plants, putting custom-made hanging baskets in the walkways and tropical houseplants in the hotel rooms. Guests love it. Now I am working on a hotel concept. I'm trying to find a location for a farmstead, greenhouse and inn in the Hudson Valley or the Catskills. PlantShed would own it, and it would be something really unique, bridging biophilia and hospitality.It's definitely something we could bring to New York City or another city down the line. We have found that incorporating plant life in an urban setting is appealing to people. We assume these travelers want a city vibe, rather than a country or tropical feel. So it would be a matter of incorporating plants and flowers in a way that accentuates the look and feel of a city. https://www.crainsnewyork.com/asked-answered/third-generation-owner-seeks-turn-retail-plant-shop-lifestyle-brand
N.Y. man who buried the man he murdered behind a N.J. florist shop found guilty - NJ.com
Tuesday, January 22, 2019Vance said in a release. "He was murdered in cold blood in a crime of unconscionable violence, his body mutilated, thrown from a fourth-story window, and abandoned behind a florist's shop in New Jersey."Comunale was stabbed 15 times on Nov. 13 at Rackover's East 59th Street apartment following a party also attended by Lawrence Dilione, 28, of Jersey City and Max Gemma, 30, of Oceanport, authorities said.Both men are also facing charges related to the incident, including a second-degree murder charge for Dilione.At about 9:45 p.m. that night, Rackover and Dilione drove Comunale's body, which had been burned, to a field behind a florist on Monmouth Boulevard in Oceanport and buried it, investigators have said. A court motion filed on behalf of Gemma, who is the son of former Oceanport Mayor Gordon Gemma in January claimed Dilione, a former Oceanport resident, admitted to investigators that he knocked Comunale unconscious after an argument over cigarettes, the New York Post reported.Dilione told investigators that Rackover then viciously kicked and beat the defenseless Comunale. After realizing Comunale was severely injured and afraid of being arrested, the motion says, Rackover said: "We have to kill him," according to the report.Rackover is expected to be sentenced on Dec. 5, a release from the district attorney's office said.The charges against Dilione and Gemma were still pending Friday, Vance said.Dilione was charged with second-degree murder, hindering prosecution, tampering with physical evidence and three counts of concealment of a human corpse. Gemma was charged with hindering prosecution and tampering with physical evidence.Dilione was scheduled to stand trial on Jan. 14 and Gemma's court da... https://www.nj.com/monmouth/index.ssf/2018/11/ny_man_who_buried_the_man_he_murdered_behind_a_nj_florist_shop_found_guilty.html