Date : 19-Dec-2012

OM GARDENS

HINDU TEMPLE OF CENTRAL TEXAS
OMKARA MAHAGANAPATHY DEVASTHANAM
The GANESHA TEMPLE OF TEXAS
4309 Midway Drive, Temple, TX 76502
www.hindutemple.org /254 771 1270

THE OM GARDEN PROJECT

Dear Devotees,
We are now in the process of beautifying the premises and creating a garden in the front lawn of the temple. The OM GARDEN PROJECT has just begun.When completed, it will be a place for the devotees to walk down, relax, sit, contemplate, meditate, tend to the flowers or just walk around the OM along the provided walkway. We hope that this will be a very unique place and it will embody the very essence of Sanathana Dharma or Hinduism.

The 3-D model of the project is on display at the temple and please review and ask questions, give suggestions.

Towards this, we request each of our devotees to make a contribution to the extent you can afford. All contributions received by the 31st of this month will be credited for this year. Thank you.

The model you are viewing is a scaled 3-dimensional model of the OM Garden Project that will be installed on the east side of the Temple.  

The scale is 1” = 4’
•    The light green slope closest to you represents a St. Augustine lawn that will be installed over the slope after soil is placed in the west end of the currently excavated site.
•    The first white line that you see represents a 2’ dry-stacked retaining wall constructed with 6”x10” chopped limestone blocks to retain the soil on the slope.   The wall is approximately 120’ long.
•    The second white line represents the landscape border.  It will be constructed using 6”x6” limestone blocks that will be mortared.  The border is approximately 128’ long.
•    The landscaped area within the borders of the retaining wall and the landscape border will be filled with low-maintenance, drought-tolerant trees, shrubs, perennials and grasses that are either indigenous or well-adapted to the area.  The small stones on either end of the beds represent boulders that are between one-quarter and one-half ton.  The beds will be amended with a soil/compost mix, planted, boulders placed then top-dressed with shredded hardwood mulch.
•    The outer ring of the OM represents a retaining wall that will be 2’ tall in the back and taper down to a height of 6” in the front.  It will be constructed with dry-stacked 6”x10” limestone blocks.
•    The inner ring of the OM represents a 3’11” dry-stacked limestone retaining wall.  It will taper down to a height of 6” in the front and constructed the same as the outer ring.
•    The narrow area between the inner and outer rings will be filled with gravel, and then topped with approximately 4” decomposed granite.
•    The OM symbol itself will be bordered with 4”x6” limestone blocks that will be mortared together.  The inside of the OM will be filled with white-colored gravel.  The outside of the OM will be filled with decomposed granite.  It is approximately 40’ from one side of the inner retaining wall to the other.
•    The small white rectangles represent stepping stones that will lead from the concrete outside of the Temple, down the slope, down limestone steps and around the OM.  Each stepping stone will be sawed limestone slabs that are approximately 22”wide and 30” long.
•    The green area around the OM represents a mixture of field grasses and Bermuda grass that will be planted by seed. 

Tracy McLoud, Terra Living, LLC, Horticulturist, is in charge of the project

Please note: We do accept credit cards and PayPal.

God Bless You
Priests:
    Sreeram Hariharan
    BS Srinidhi
HTCT Board

OM GARDENS - SPONSOR AN ITEM

The following job proposal and cost itemization is based on details displayed in the landscape model presented.  Each portion of the job will be installed as described in the model and in the following text. 
•    1. Provide scaled 3-dimensional model: 800.00 (DONATED BY Terra Living)
•    2. Excavate site in preparation for project installation .    (Already done)    $1,500.00
•    3. Backfill site to recreate slope that will be retained by a two foot tall retaining wall.  Soil will be compacted by skid-steer loader. $800.00
•    4. Build 2’ high retaining wall with limestone steps.   $7,000.00   
•    5. Install landscape border using 6”x6” limestone blocks    $1,680.00
•    6. Install landscape bed as designed: $4,000.00
•    7. Build 2’ tall retaining wall around outer perimeter of OM that will taper down to 6” in the front.   $6,500.00
•    8. Build 3’11” tall retaining wall around inner perimeter of OM that will taper down to 6” in the front.  $8,000.00
•    9. Fill inside of OM retaining walls with topsoil up to within 4” of the top of the retaining walls.   $3,550.00
•    10. Install OM symbol using 4”x6” limestone blocks set in a bed of mortar with mortared joints.  Fill inside of OM with screened limestone gravel and outside with decomposed granite.    $5,000.00
•    11. Install stepping stones from the cement outside of the Temple to the front of the OM and around the perimeter of the OM. $1,200.00
•    12. Spread fresh loose topsoil over area around the OM and top with annual rye grass seed and Bermuda grass seed. $1,000.00
•    13. Spread fresh loose soil over slope and cover with St. Augustine sod. $2,250.00
•    14. Plant six 15 gallon trees $1,200.00

TOTAL COST OF THE PROJECT : 44,480

•    15. Not yet priced: Irrigation system and lighting.

Please print the follwoing sponsroship form, fill out the details and mail with your sponsorship amount to the Hindu Temple of Central Texas, 4309 Midway Drive, Temple, TX 76502. Please do not mail cash.

 
OM PROJECT: SPONSORSHIP FORM

Sponsor Name:______________________________________

    Address:__________________________________________

        ________________________________________________

    Tel #: ____ ____ ______    e-mail: ______________________

Sponsorship amount: _________. ___

Check #