Hidden in the heart of Pasadena is the city’s only dedicated public garden: an exquisite world of native flora, birds and butterflies. It’s hard to envision the past life of these three magical acres; they were formerly an empty lot on a onetime staging ground for the abandoned 710 freeway extension.
The garden was developed on Caltrans-owned land leased to the city by Arlington Garden, a non-profit 501(c)3 corporation, in collaboration with the Pasadena Department of Public Works and Pasadena Water & Power. Additional help came from Pasadena Beautiful Foundation and the Mediterranean Garden Society. All these entities, along with garden clubs, local businesses, nurseries, neighbors and friends, support it today.
Since the garden opened in 2005, both its audience and its mission have expanded—and it’s been challenging for the staff and Board of Directors to keep their communication clear and their vision aligned. Recently, Executive Director Michelle Matthews contacted Jericho Road Pasadena for guidance in finding a facilitator who could help everyone come together.
The search led to Bob Harrison, one of JRP’s most active volunteers and supporters. The owner of Pasadena’s popular Green Street restaurant, Harrison has served on many boards over the years and studied their best practices. He’s also a certified Workplace Conflict Mediation expert with seasoned skills in board development, mediation, strategic planning, and more.
His work with the garden involved facilitating three meetings, a board retreat, and several planning/strategy sessions focused on identifying areas of past and current conflict.
“Conflict in any group is not a bad thing, but unresolved conflict is,” Harrison says. “It’s important to have a neutral person listen intently, then ask questions that help people express their feelings about the conflict and see their own roles in it. Studies show that a well-crafted mediation session can resolve an issue over 90% of the time.” The Arlington team came away with a number of new organizational guidelines for roles and responsibilities. They also agreed on some key short-term priorities, including what success might look like for each one.
Matthews reports that the process has had fast results: “Bob’s coaching immediately impacted our organization by visibly enhancing our board’s governance skills and getting all of us closely aligned with our mission.
The Arlington Garden mission will continue to evolve, starting with a current new focus on promoting urban wildlife habitat and regenerative gardening techniques. Harrison is confident the entire team is ready to guide every unfolding change. “I’ve learned boards that have a full understanding of their organization’s mission—and make decisions that align with it—thrive,” he says.
Thanks to volunteer Linda Taubenreuther for writing this blog post!