Our Story...our dream
The idea for the Carbondale Community Oven emerged around 2009 when some friends discovered they all wanted to bake in a masonry oven. Wouldn’t it be fun, they thought, to have a public bread oven where we could bake outdoors? We could make crusty artisan breads and create our own wood-fired pizzas. A community oven would give us one more chance to hang out together, get us out of our own hot kitchens, and bake bread the ancient, artisan way.
Everyone agreed on one thing: The oven had to be on public property and open to everyone.
With this in mind, we invited interested parties to get together and discuss the possibilities. Home bakers, professional chefs, community organizers and fans of good eating attended. The decision? Let’s do it!
Next, we approached our town government and were offered the use of a piece of land in a then-unused town park. An old public school at the site was being remodeled for use as a nonprofit cooperative, and the oven would fit in well with the lively community activities that were soon to take place there. The space was next to a bike path, had beautiful mountain views, and eventually included a bustling community garden.
Before breaking ground, we invited local officials, including the town manager and building and fire inspectors, to advise us about our project. Because a masonry oven is very similar to an outdoor barbecue, the officials declared that no unusual permits were required. We showed them pictures of similar masonry ovens and shared our blueprint with them. They were very helpful with suggestions and advice, and watched our progress with interest.
Everyone agreed on one thing: The oven had to be on public property and open to everyone.
With this in mind, we invited interested parties to get together and discuss the possibilities. Home bakers, professional chefs, community organizers and fans of good eating attended. The decision? Let’s do it!
Next, we approached our town government and were offered the use of a piece of land in a then-unused town park. An old public school at the site was being remodeled for use as a nonprofit cooperative, and the oven would fit in well with the lively community activities that were soon to take place there. The space was next to a bike path, had beautiful mountain views, and eventually included a bustling community garden.
Before breaking ground, we invited local officials, including the town manager and building and fire inspectors, to advise us about our project. Because a masonry oven is very similar to an outdoor barbecue, the officials declared that no unusual permits were required. We showed them pictures of similar masonry ovens and shared our blueprint with them. They were very helpful with suggestions and advice, and watched our progress with interest.
The next step.
We gathered information at the library and from the internet. The best source for the information we needed was a book called The Bread Builders by Alan Scott, and we bought a copy and passed it around. We learned that there were a few privately-owned outdoor ovens in our area, and we visited them to see how they worked. These ovens had been owner-built, so we felt reasonably sure that our volunteers could build one, too.
At the same time, we let the local media--radio stations and newspapers--know what we were up to. We put up a simple, free website and assembled an email list of people who wanted to be kept informed about the project.
At the same time, we let the local media--radio stations and newspapers--know what we were up to. We put up a simple, free website and assembled an email list of people who wanted to be kept informed about the project.
Oh, yeah. Money.
Like true idealists, we didn’t worry about the money at the beginning. We talked about our dreams of community bakes and potluck meals, and learned that everyone has a story about home-baked bread. We spread the word about the proposed Community Oven. Many people thought we actually had an oven before the foundation was poured! It was such a feel-good project...how could it not happen?
Only then did we start asking for money.
Once the oven was completed, people asked: What did it cost?
We spent about $3500 on the oven itself. Our town, kind individuals, and community foundations donated that amount. Half of the money paid for the 16 x 16 foot concrete pad/foundation. Local building supply companies sold us materials (bricks, blocks and mortar) at cost, saving us a lot of money.
This gave us a plain, undecorated brick oven with a large fire/baking chamber on a base of cinder blocks. It was functional, but not very pretty. Then, visiting our site, the vice-president of a large masonry company offered to provide laborers to clad the oven in natural peachblow sandstone that someone had donated. Beautiful metal doors were created by a local metalworker. We ended up with a gorgeous oven that would have cost many times what we actually spent in dollars.
Only then did we start asking for money.
Once the oven was completed, people asked: What did it cost?
We spent about $3500 on the oven itself. Our town, kind individuals, and community foundations donated that amount. Half of the money paid for the 16 x 16 foot concrete pad/foundation. Local building supply companies sold us materials (bricks, blocks and mortar) at cost, saving us a lot of money.
This gave us a plain, undecorated brick oven with a large fire/baking chamber on a base of cinder blocks. It was functional, but not very pretty. Then, visiting our site, the vice-president of a large masonry company offered to provide laborers to clad the oven in natural peachblow sandstone that someone had donated. Beautiful metal doors were created by a local metalworker. We ended up with a gorgeous oven that would have cost many times what we actually spent in dollars.