Cincinnati Enquirer

Clovernook Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired and an Over-the-Rhine store are doing their part to help the environment.

The agency has joined with Park + Vine, a green general store at 1109 Vine St., to sell biodegradable and compostable paper cups made and sold by Clovernook.

Clovernook vice president Doug Jacques said the cups, manufactured with elemental chlorine-free paper and a special coating, are capable of holding hot beverages.

Park + Vine owner Dan Korman said he was looking to expand its ecologically friendly merchandise, and Clovernook provided the product.

The store opened June 1 and is among a wave of stores nationwide focusing on environmentally friendly products. It is the first retailer in Cincinnati to specialize in those products, which include home furnishings, personal care products, home improvement items and apparel.

Korman said he wanted to create a store that would affect everyday life.

“By transforming our holistic approach, we are able to conserve water, reduce electricity by using energy-saving bulbs and give back to our community by selling nonprofit social enterprise products,” he said.

Lori Wortylko, manager of communications and marketing at Clovernook, said the partnership is a perfect match because both are trying to give back to the community and improve the environment.

Wortylko said the cups are manufactured at Clovernook’s center in Memphis and obtained through the Clovernook Center in North College Hill.

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Park + Vine turns two-months-old July 27. So what better way to celebrate than to introduce a new artist and partner with two local galleries, while livening up our effects and putting a few things on sale.

One of Park + Vine’s most anticipated new products is the ThrashCan. Made from 99 percent re-claimed automobile tires and recycled plastic trim, this sturdy can accommodates grocery bags and 8 gallon liners, and features integral handles along the top.

We’re equally excited about the Juice Clock, which is created from reclaimed and recycled detergent bottles. Available in orange, lemon and grapefruit, this colorful compact quartz clock mechanism comes with snap-on hands and batteries. The ThrashCan and Juice Can–arriving later this week–can only be found in Cincinnati at Park + Vine.

In other product news, Park + Vine is offering 25 percent off all Fire & Light hand-poured glass tableware through July 31. Meanwhile, we’re close to becoming a retailer for Shaw Contract Group’s environmentally-guaranteed carpet collection. Shaw provided the Angela Adams-designed carpet tiles covering our main floor.

Final Friday is a big night for us and our neighborhood, and we’re celebrating in a big way. Caroline Statkus’ photo essay, Bhutan: A Glimpse into the Culture and People of the Last Himalayan Buddhist Kingdom, makes its debut at Park + Vine July 27. Statkus shows how Bhutan bases its policies on sustainability and has adopted a goal of “gross national happiness.” It’s summer-sale time, too. Sameunderneath’s bamboo and cotton apparel, Helen E. Riegle’s handbags, Blackspot’s sneakers and boots, and Vegetarian Shoes’ shoes are all priced 30 percent off July 27-Aug. 31. And we’re partnering with our good friends at Nicholas Gallery (23 E. Court Street) and Carteaux & Leslie (921 Vine Street) on their joint exhibit, Candy, which opens July 27. Stop by each gallery and pick up a coupon good for 25 percent off any one food or drink item at Park + Vine through Aug. 18.

Lastly, Park + Vine is a proud sponsor of Miami Group Sierra Club’s 26th annual Morning Glory Ride Aug. 5. This early-morning ride includes a glorious car-free ride along Columbia Parkway between Sawyer Point and Delta Avenue. Look for our table at the end of the ride.

We’re open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. for Final Friday.

xo
Dan

Cincinnati Enquirer

Final Friday–Head to Over-the-Rhine Friday to shop participating boutiques, including the recently opened Park + Vine, 1109 Vine St., in the new Gateway Quarter. Check out summer-sale merchandise (handbags, apparel, footwear) at this eco-friendly store, as well as its photography exhibit.

- Julie Fitzgerald

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Cincinnati Enquirer
BY MIKE BOYER | MBOYER@ENQUIRER.COM

Duke Energy Ohio customers can show their support for a cleaner environment for as little as $5 a month.

The utility, which has 680,000 electric customers in Southwest Ohio, launched its GoGreen power program, one of the first in the state, Friday afternoon. And the first customer to enroll was Wyoming resident Alan Schriber, who is also chairman of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio.

“I’ve gone green; it was painless,” said Schriber. “I think it’s inevitable these types of programs will be offered by all utilities in the state.”

In May, the commission approved Duke’s program, developed with the Ohio Consumers’ Counsel, which permits electric customers to pay a premium in their monthly electric bill to support renewable energy such as wind, solar and hydroelectric power.

Here’s how the program works: Customers who sign up agree to pay $5 a month over their regular electric rate for 200 kilowatt hours of electricity. Five dollars is the minimum, but customers can opt to pay a premium for additional 100 kilowatt increments at $2.50 each. The utility says the average residential customer uses about 1,000 kilowatts a month.

Duke will use the money to buy what are known as “renewable energy certificates,” or RECs, an increasingly popular way consumers and businesses can underwrite the higher cost of producing energy from alternative sources by helping defray the cost of generating it.

“The wind is free, but the turbines (that generate electricity) aren’t,” said John Langston, Duke’s GoGreen program manager. Initially, the GoGreen premiums collected by Duke will be invested in alternative energy projects in other parts of the country, but the hope is as more consumers support the program, it will spark investments in Ohio.

“We want to buy from somebody in Ohio when we can,” he said.

Duke Energy has had a similar GoGreen program in its Indiana service area for about a year, and Langston said Duke is pleased with the response.

Under the former Cinergy Corp., the utility offered a green power program in Northern Kentucky, which allowed customers to make contributions to underwrite alternative energy programs. Langston said customers often didn’t see the benefit in that approach. He said Duke will eventually ask the Kentucky Public Utilities Commission to approve a GoGreen program similar to those in Ohio and Indiana.

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CINCINNATI – Food, art, organic wine and stimulating conversation are on tap as part of the Final Friday gallery walk at Park + Vine, 1109 Vine Street. Photographer Caroline Statkus’ photo essay, Bhutan: A Glimpse into the Culture and People of the Last Himalayan Buddhist Kingdom, is the latest art installation to debut at Park + Vine, which is also putting several apparel, handbag and footwear lines on sale. A reception kicks things off from 6 to 10 p.m. July 27.

Statkus shows how Bhutan, a landlocked nation in the Himalayan Mountains, bases its policies on sustainability and has adopted a goal of “gross national happiness.” To achieve that goal, they use the middle path strategy that addresses four pillars of gross national happiness: equitable and sustainable socioeconomic development, ecological preservation, cultural preservation and good governance. The installation runs through Sept. 22.

Sameunderneath’s socially conscious bamboo and cotton apparel, Helen E. Riegle’s eco-aware handbags, Blackspot’s rough-and-ready sneakers and boots, and Vegetarian Shoes’ animal-friendly shoes are priced 30 percent off to make room for fall goods. The sale runs through Aug. 31.

Park + Vine is among a wave of stores nationwide focusing on ecologically friendly and environmentally sustainable merchandise, which ranges from home furnishings and personal care products to home improvement items and apparel and footwear. Creative programming such as art installations, lectures and film screenings on sustainable living is also scheduled.

Park + Vine is open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday-Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. for Final Friday. Park + Vine’s hours coincide with much of Music Fusion Weekend July 27-29.

Shoppers can earn “carbon credits” to offset the environmental impact of their trip to Park + Vine with a donation to Everybody Rides Metro Foundation. Customers are encouraged to ride their bike, walk or take Metro to Park + Vine, which offers free indoor and outdoor bicycle parking.

Park + Vine has an online survey about shopping preferences, and is looking to expand its network of MySpace friends.

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Saturday is easily our busiest day of the week. Each subsequent Saturday trumps the previous one. More and more happy people are making an afternoon out of visiting our emerging stretch of Vine Street, which includes City Roots, Metronation, Rohs Hardware, Suder’s Art Store, and more (Venice on Vine is closed Saturdays), before or after a trip to Cincinnati’s epicurean paradise, Findlay Market.

We sent our second e-newsletter to more than 300 subscribers July 6, but apparently not everyone got it. Hopefully, it’ll be a different story for the August edition. In the meantime, here’s the latest news from the store.

First, our newest line, Splaff Flopps, comes from San Diego, Calif. Born in a garage with a tire, a bike tube, and a shoe knife, Splaff evolved into a purveyor of sandals, handbags, belts, and wallets. Everything is made with recycled race car tires and bicycle inner tubes, regupol (a cushioning material made from used tires), and hemp. Products are hand-crafted and produced in a 100 percent waste free, earth friendly process where all left over materials are either re-used or recycled. Park + Vine is an exclusive Cincinnati retailer for Splaff.

Second, Park + Vine is offering 25 percent off all Fire & Light hand-poured glass tableware through July 31. The Arcata, Calif.-based company melts crushed recycled glass in furnaces before pressing it into colorful bowls, plates, and glasses. This beautiful glassware radiates in natural light and is not suitable for dishwashers. Park + Vine is an exclusive Cincinnati retailer for Fire & Light.

Third, Park + Vine is a proud sponsor of New Stage Collective’s production of Radiant Baby through July 15 and Miami Group Sierra Club’s 26th annual Morning Glory Ride Aug. 5. The Morning Glory Ride includes a glorious car-free ride along beautiful Columbia Parkway between Sawyer Point and Delta Avenue.

We’re open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. for Final Friday. Check us out.

xo
Dan

The store is quieter than usual this week and we suspect that the mid-week Independence Day holiday has something to do with it. These slower days give us a chance to nurture the store a bit more than usual. We’ve added some new products and marked down (25 percent) all Fire & Light hand-poured glass tableware through July 31. Park + Vine is an exclusive Cincinnati retailer for Fire & Light.

The most colorful new items in the store are Twist sponges and loofahs made using cellulose from renewable tree farms and ensuring that 99.7 percent of their waste is reused. Printed on the back of the packaging are plans for turning it into a clever little bird feeder. We carry the Euro Sponge #10 ($2) and the Loofah Sponge #50 ($5).

Vegan Lunch Box is Park + Vine’s first attempt at book merchantry. Vegan Lunch Box carries 295 full-color pages of entirely meat-free, egg-free, and dairy-free lunches. The book sells for $22.95.

VegNews is the second magazine–the other is Plenty–to land on our shelves. It offers readers up-to-date information on living a compassionate and healthy lifestyle with such features as travel tales, food and health, delicious vegan recipes, and the hottest new veg products. VegNews is printed on 75 percent post-consumer, recycled paper from New Leaf Paper.

We’re working on another order that promises to kick up our accessories line a bit with a larger variety of cool wallets, belts and bags made out of recycled rubber bicycle tires. More on this in the next week or so.

In the meantime, check out Park + Vine’s wares at the Second Sunday on Main street fair noon to 5 p.m. July 8 on Main Street between 13th and Liberty streets.

Lastly, we’re proudly sponsoring New Stage Collective’s production of Radiant Baby through July 15 and Miami Group Sierra Club’s 26th annual Morning Glory Ride Aug. 5. The Morning Glory Ride includes a glorious car-free ride along beautiful Columbia Parkway between Sawyer Point and Delta Avenue. Get tickets for Radiant Baby and register for the Morning Glory Ride pronto.

xo
Dan