Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico - Bring your friends and join the Puerto Vallarta Garden Club for our next monthly meeting on March 16 at 5:00 pm, at Incanto, 109 Insurgentes at the Rio Cuale.

At this month's meeting, Mike Laking, Photo Artisan and Garden Club member, will give a presentation on "Nature Photos Made Easy." These tips and techniques should be helpful for our many members that love taking photos of plants, gardens and flowers.

The reception begins at 5:00 pm in the Incanto main floor terrace, followed by remarks and the presentation in the Cabaret room. Afterward, members and guests are invited to stay for Happy Hour with Jean-Guy Comeau in the Piano Bar and Michael McAssey at 8:00 pm.

Pier Street Project Begins This Week

This week, the Garden Club launches it's biggest project of the season and one of the largest projects we've ever undertaken. We've received formal approval from the City of Vallarta to upgrade the hardscape and landscaping of lower Francisca Rodriguez, the block adjacent to Los Muertos Pier, and we're very excited to make this happen!

The first phase of the project calls for a reworking of the areas in front of the new Street Bar, the taco truck area, and the electrical station at the end of the street. The city has also asked us to construct a new bodega near the transformer, so as to eliminate an area known for illegal activity in the evening. We've also been asked to remove and replace the grid paving near the OXXO and Dee's Coffee that is so difficult to clean.

The new hardscape in the first two sections will resemble the area already completed by the owners of Archie's Wok. (It's beautiful!) New benches, palms and bedding plants will be added to these spaces once the structural work is complete. If all goes according to plan, we will have the first phase finished in April. Later in the year, we will install a large number of palms on the street to add visual height and greenery to the sightline.

Many thanks to Tom Sparling, landscape architect and Garden Club member, for his expertise and design of this project.

As mentioned, the scale of the project is quite large and the cost could ultimately exceed 300,000 pesos. As a result, the Garden Club is actively seeking donations to help cover the cost of this ambitious endeavor. Donations to the Pier Street Project can be made at our March meeting.