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Tequesta EAC reports strong turnout for vertical oyster garden event; plans more community installations
Summary
Committee members reported about 100 attendees at an April vertical oyster-garden event, partnerships with Echo Scouts and the West Palm Beach Fishing Club, volunteer hosts (about 14 so far) and low per-unit material costs, with plans to tie future installations to community events.
Jay Hutch and committee members recapped a vertical oyster garden installation event held in April and discussed next steps, volunteer recruitment and potential opportunities to pair future installations with larger community events.
Hutch said the April event had a strong turnout — "in the ballpark of a 100" — and that community partners supplied materials and technical support. The Echo Scouts and the West Palm Beach Fishing Club were named as partners: the fishing club donates oyster shells and the Echo Scouts (a homeschool group) helped install vertical gardens.
"We had a really good vertical oyster garden event back in April," Hutch said, adding that the parks department supported the event and that the demonstration reached many residents. He told the committee there are about 14 residents who have volunteered to host vertical oyster gardens so far.
Members discussed leveraging existing community gatherings — the October shred event, a July 4 celebration or parks department summer programs — to boost visibility. Hutch suggested tabling at those events with brochures and suggested EAC‑branded table covers for outreach.
On materials and cost, Hutch and members said recycled oyster shells are donated and that the main expenses are hardware lines and paracord, with one committee member estimating roughly $5 per line. The committee discussed engaging high-school and middle-school service programs to provide volunteers and community-service hours for youth.
Committee members did not take a formal funding vote at the meeting but asked staff to explore pairing events and to circulate dates when in-house events would be feasible.
