Community spirit on wheels!

1. The project in a nutshell:

Create welcoming gathering places in the Faverges neighborhood by redecorating the community center’s café (with wood, colors, and plants!) and building a mobile bar to bring a sense of community to every corner of the neighborhood!

2. The amount requested to carry out the project:

15,500 CHF (design, development, and communication)

3. The project in detail, in 4 steps:

1) Redecorate the café at the Maison de quartier des Faverges to create a welcoming gathering space. Working closely with residents and the community center team to identify needs and preferences, a professional artist and cabinetmaker is proposing a redesign featuring more wood, plants, and color! The idea is to repurpose materials, find beautiful secondhand furniture, and refurbish it as needed to create a cohesive and inviting decor. We’ll furnish the space with wooden storage units and display boards, along with an abundance of greenery!

2) In the renovated café, offer two weekly meetups at set times: for example, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, or one in the afternoon and one happy hour (to be determined with residents). It’s a chance to chat over coffee, homemade lemonade, or a glass of wine; play cards; knit; discuss a topic of interest; sing; laugh—in short, spend time together! A volunteer will be in charge of serving and leading each session. The goal is to have a rotation among the volunteers, so that all neighborhood residents feel welcome and so that different generations, languages, and skills can come together! A stipend of 25.- per session is provided for volunteers who help out at the café.

3) Build a mobile bar module: This module will be used by the community center but can also be borrowed by neighborhood residents who wish to offer various activities and services: bike repairs, storytime, tastings of specific foods or drinks, raising a little money for a field trip or a nonprofit, offering short-term childcare, etc.

The bar will be on wheels (with brakes!) and will have various storage spaces: one space for a cooler, another for dishes and thermoses, a third for the two umbrellas and two folding chairs, and a fourth left open for those organizing the activity! It will be designed and built under the supervision of the artist-cabinetmaker, with the help of neighborhood residents who wish to participate. The advantage of a bar on wheels: it can go anywhere and foster a sense of community in unexpected spots around the neighborhood—in front of a garage, along the edge of a garden, or at the end of an alley…

4) A door-to-door flyer translated into several languages announces the meetups at the café and the option to borrow the mobile bar.

4. The objective of your project:

To foster social interaction, a sense of community, and civic engagement in the Faverges neighborhood and to facilitate the exchange of services among residents, based on each person’s interests and skills.

5. The exact address of your project and the neighborhood it is located in:

Community Center & the entire Faverges neighborhood!

6. Your organization’s name (optional):

Association Territoires sensibles, 1006 Lausanne (Faverges)