VIDEO: Tunnel Vision has High HoopsTodd Alexander: Ohio City Sprouts a Farmer and Partner in Tunnel Visions Hoops
I literally stumbled on Todd Alexander last Saturday morning. I was at the West Side Market and noticed the farm stand at the end of the street. Then I saw the 6+ acre farm behind the stand, and was blown away. I walked the length of it in amazement, looking back and forth at the immaculate rows of fall crops, and past them to the city skyline on my right and the CMHA towers on my left. At the far north end of this pastoral tract in the middle of the city was Mr. Alexander and his girl friend, methodically working rows of dirt, furrowing out old, left-over and root-rotted carrots and planting a winter crop of garlic.
I had to find out what possessed these two young people to spend their Saturdays digging in the dirt, and that’s when it got really interesting. It turns out Todd Alexander is an entrepreneur. He and partners Michael Walton and Carlton Jackson’s company Tunnel Vision Hoops, which operates out of Shaker LaunchHouse, is providing growers in NEO with an affordable alternative to traditional greenhouses. His high-hoop houses are a more affordable and less permanent way to extend the growing season. The hoop houses also have a rain-water collection system and uniquely designed end walls for ventilation, easy access and wind resistance. Cleveland Botanical Garden and Case Western Reserve University are among their first customers.
But wait, there’s more! He is also a partner in a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) and their farm, Central Roots Farm, is what I stumbled on. He and his partners Sarah Sampsell and Matthew Pietro started Central Roots Farm by accident. After taking the Market Gardener Training Course from OSU together they started farming this plot of land a few years ago, thinking they would do it for a couple of years and gain some experience prior to acquiring a list of customers. However, while attending an E4S (Entrepreneurs for Sustainability) event, he was approached by someone who represented a group who was looking for a CSA, and the rest is history.
Listen in as Todd tells Cool Cleveland correspondent Carol Drummond about Tunnel Vision Hoops, Central Roots Farm and Ohio City Farm.
Find out more here: www.TunnelVisionHoops.com, www.CentralRoots.com, www.Ohio CityFarm.com, or call Todd Alexander at 330.283.5717.
Carol Drummond has been a professional designer for 27 years. Prior to starting her award-winning graphic design studio 17 years ago, Drummond Design, she graduated from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, worked at a graphic design studio, a video production company, and a consumer products company. She has been an art docent for Mayfield City Schools and currently serves on the COSE Arts Network Advisory Committee. http://www.DrummonDesign.com