The Clearing’s Pass the Hat Campaign is an annual fund-raising event for special projects right here at The Clearing. Beginning in 2009, this campaign has raised over $145,000, which has helped support many projects, including the renovation of historic buildings, restoring historic gardens and the construction of a new Forge and metals studio.

For the next two years, the focus of our facility improvement efforts will be The Clearing landscape. Given that our founder, Jens Jensen, was a renowned landscape architect — the “father” of the prairie-style of landscape design—this is “right up our alley.” Many of the projects will be in and around the historic campus area, where new stone work and new plantings will reflect, to the best of our ability, Jensen’s design aesthetic and philosophy.

So, we’re Passing the Hat again this year, and hoping you will be a part of these unique landscape projects!

RENOVATING JENSEN’S OUTDOOR AMPHITHEATER

One of the major projects will be the renovation of the Players’ Green, an outdoor amphitheater built by Jensen and his landscape architecture students in the late 1930s. In addition to a thorough “tidying up” of the area, including exposing those parts of the stone work in front of the stage that have slowly been buried by decades of leaf litter and decay, weather-resistant benches will be installed to replace the earthen seating that has slowly but steadily “shrunk down” over the years, to the point where it is no longer usable.

IMPROVED PARKING, ROAD & TRAIL CIRCULATION

Another project will be a major renovation of the parking area and driveway system at the Jens Jensen Visitor Center. The existing sunken parking lot will be filled in, so no more “lake” or “ice skating rink” at the south end. The driveway will be re-routed so that vehicles will enter and exit at the same location on Garrett Bay Road and will allow two-way traffic along the entire route. There will be two locations to enter and exit the new parking lot, and additional handicap parking spaces will be added closer to the building. Also, the front drive will connect to the staff parking lot and delivery area at the back of the building. The project will greatly improve traffic flow and parking at the Jensen Center. Those sections of existing road that will be abandoned as a result of the project will be re-forested, resulting in a “net gain” of natural area.