Food Production Planning--New or Not?

In reflection of this week's readings, we point to one storied example. Boston's Roxbury neighborhood is a hackneyed planning feat that cross a number of planning thresholds. From community organization through true "grassroots" mobilization, the scenario also presents an innovative approach to protect the residents, land owners, and the land itself. Through the creation of a land trust, stakeholders were able to pool their resources and preserve their future interests. "Trusts" feels more like a term that is reserved for the cash-rich, entrepreneur-type, but in actuality it is not a new concept to planning, land development, or property rights. Oftentimes, as the readings of this week suggest in more nuanced terms, the solutions to creative planning processes are right under our noses. It seems that TDRs, transfer of development rights, have only gained traction in the last ten years or so, but they are yet another planning tool that is right under our noses. They are detailed in many comprehensive plans, and accepted by city planning departments. Perhaps, if these tools have been present all along, property owners and residents do not have enough knowledge on their existence or ultimate use. Breeching into this topic actually segues into more theoretical planning practices. Is it the obligation of the government agency to educate property owner's on the subtle tools that could affect their property rights or be an instrument of solution in problem-stricken areas? Could the government have an incentive to not detail this information to property owners? How is it possible to educate everyone on the matter? The answer is that it is not. Few civilians are trained planners, lawyers, or real estate developers. So how do we bridge the communication gap in this situation? It would be costly, time-consuming, and, for lack of a better word, "tricky."


This forays into "advocacy planning," where the city planner takes on a cause for a certain neighborhood, enclave, or community acting as their advocate. Advocacy planning, arguably, does not have an extensive presence in the planning world. With the onset of the economic recession, cases have popped up across the country in response to the real estate bubble collapse, among other factors, to cope with defunct urban lands and the like. However, that still does not make advocacy planning instantly popular or practical. So, the question remains (though slightly evolved); how can planners, who are not only trained in technical methodologies, but also undeniably interested in the livelihood of citizens and communities, use their knowledge to provide support to property owners and blighted areas? It is not always within the realm of our duties to do so. As great as it would be, "planning" is not always initiating exciting and innovative projects because we know it would work or that its best. We have to lay the foundation for others (the private sector) to intervene within the framework set up by planners. We can use the comprehensive plan to nudge development in one direction or another, and if there's a budget surplus or amenable political climate then we might be able to initiate creative projects. Yet, we must accept a reality where that does not always happen (it is possible, though). Particularly, when we consider the future of planning for food production in a state like Florida (where comprehensive plans are legally mandated), there is no requirement or incentive to include elements expressly related to food production. Currently, we have to rely on citizens self-educating and put our trust in the language and tools laid out in comprehensive plans (TDRs, easements, etc.). Community gardens and food trucks are relatively new on the planning time scale, and many municipalities do not have the ordinances in place to accommodate them or in turn no precedence makes it difficult to establish such codes. Organizations like APA can use their state chapters to translate messages that promote sustainable food production planning and offer solutions in the meantime. Planning for food production cannot declare success until stakeholders are aware of the tools available to them, and have the resources to implement their unique visions.

Urban Agriculture and Tallahassee

     It wasn't until my second semester Freshman year that I discovered the urban farm niche of Tallahassee. In a city that seems relatively cold at times with its strips of bars, gas stations, and traffic,it was hard to believe that there are hidden enclaves of organic food scattered throughout town. A friend and  I had recently hear of the Damayan Garden Project tucked next to Lichgate park an decided to check it out. As much as I enjoyed playing in the dirt and trying the different herbs, it was the community involvement that I found most enamoring. They used the garden as a tool to teach kids self-dependency and nutrition. 

     Later on I did a project for my Intro to Urban Planning class on iGrow in Frenchtown. Even though we just dropped by unannounced to check it out, the volunteers and garden managers were incredibly open to talking about the work they do, the kids they work with, and the awesome food they harvest. Not only do they offer a safe, educational outlet for the neighborhood kids to spend their afternoons, but they spread the excess vegetables around the area to surrounding neighbors. In our last class we mentioned how one of the motivations for small, locally based markets to offer fresh produce is because they feel that it is needed in the community. In a way, this reminds me a lot of iGrow's incentives for offering these resources to people who may find themselves in a food desert deprived of fresh vegetables. 

     Efforts to tighten restrictions on CAFOs like those mentioned in the Tom Daniels' article as well as the surfacing of issues associated with mass agriculture in general seems to have pushed people to take matters into their own hands and create their own food sources without having to worry that there is too much or too little regulation.  However, how wide spread can this movement grow when, like the NRC article explains, there is such an incredibly high demand for all kinds of crops. This seems too far out of an urban farmer's hands, especially without the pragmatic cooperation of the city's urban planners. Acquiring the land for preservation and perhaps eventual food use seems to be an option for cities to create a green space as well as incorporating urban agriculture into the landscape. Although iGrow, Ripe City, Damayan, and other agriculture plots may not be equipped to supply everyone in the entire city, they still function as an integral part of our communities and need zoning and regulations that support their efforts.

Week 8; A Reflection on Urban Gardens

                 Back in the day, everyone used to tend their own gardens and unite as a community to create common gardens for the water effort. However, with the rise of urbanization and a period of tremendous prosperity, gardening fell out of favor while supermarkets and restaurants became the go-to for daily food. Now, community gardens are making a comeback to help foster proper nutrition and neighborhood involvement starting in low-income areas.
                 I thought creating an urban garden would be easy-just find some land and seeds- but that's not all; there's a lot of work to be done that's not including any plants! The SCLT (Southside Community Land Trust) in Providence, RI deals with all the details on how to get a community garden going; acquiring vacant plots of land, leasing it to resident-farmers and all the paperwork. I used to live in Rhode Island and the Broad Street area isn't the greatest; it's industrial-like and a bit run-down looking. Yet, they transformed vacant lots into fresh new gardens and it's positively impacted the community. My aunt goes down there to buy fresh foods and vegetables that are in season and she loves it. It's good food, wholesome and you're keeping the money flowing within the community. It's been worth it because it's been such a success that they want to expand and grow even more.

                  To make a community garden work you need a lot of democracy in the decision-making, diversity and a set of rules so everyone can agree on so they can garden in peace. This can be a difficult thing to do but it really is a great thing to see a bunch of people get togethor and make something beautiful; everyone uniting in the name of good food and getting back to the land.

Week 8 Reflection

Two weeks ago I went to my first community garden here in Tallahassee at Igrow Whatever You Like in South City. I was immediately met with challenges as I drove up and down all of Orange Avenue. Upon finally finding the location I was in awe at the mounds of compost laying on one half of the garden. As the physical labor began I met a few of the leaders and asked them where their soil comes from and the potatoes we were planting came from. While the garden is organic I found out that the soil they use comes from larger agribusinesses and goes through a particular process before arriving at the community garden. This means that while the growing technique may be organic the soil doesn’t necessarily come from an organic business. This was one of the risks that Urban Agriculture: Growing Healthy, Sustainable Places mentioned facing urban gardens.

Soil contamination can have a negative and subtle impact on famers and consumers through their interaction and consumption of the crops grown. As the article mentions, without proper soil testing and cleaning it could have a worse impact on the environment. On the other hand, one solution the article mentioned that I found interesting was mixing 2 parts of organic compost with 1 part of the soil that was already used and processed. It said the natural components of the organic compost would break down any toxins within the previously used one. Based on my experience at Igrow it appears they already do this because of the multiple smaller mounds of compost they have fermenting within the community garden’s grounds. It’s a great feeling to be able to apply what’s read from these articles to infer and understand what’s going on solely from observation.

Week 8 Reading

This week's Hodgson chapter gave an in-depth definition of urban agriculture in the United States, from its history to the ways in which the current planning environment can either facilitate or discourage its practice. I was aware that urban agriculture has been a part of U.S. cities since colonial times, but I was unaware of the extent of this involvement. For instance, I found it very interesting that New York's Central Park was once home to a dairy operation. From the reading it is clear that the presence of agricultural activities within cities was an effective strategy to address poverty and community development in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, from providing milk to mothers and children (like an early WIC program) to the planting of vegetable gardens in housing projects directed to help recent immigrants (Hodgson, 2012).

The heyday of urban food production was in the early to mid-20th century, during the World Wars and Great Depression, which was the time when the federal government first became involved in urban agriculture initiatives. The victory gardens of this time period are well known, but the extent and productivity of these gardens were greater than I had ever realized. In the year 1943 there were over twenty million gardens on private and public lands throughout urban areas, which produced around ten million tons of fruit and vegetables (Hodgson, 2012). Despite the benefits of urban agriculture to society in these periods of duress, once the economy began to thrive in the latter 20th century and agriculture in the rural areas of the country industrialized, the practice of food production in cities lost much support. The combination of sub-urbanization and the development of zoning as a tool to separate perceived incompatible uses led to planners and local governments pushing farming further and further away from city centers (Hodgson, 2012).

Although urban agriculture is once again becoming a supported practice around the country, zoning ordinances still create barriers for many would-be farmers in cities. Other barriers include lack of secure land tenure, as many developers and planners may view urban farms and community gardens as interim uses, and difficulty accessing the resources necessary such as affordable land and uncontaminated soil and water. Hodgson also brings up lack of funding as a problem for farm and garden programs attempting to get started. It is interesting that commodity farms may receive around $75 billion in government subsidies, but the amount available for the USDA's Community Food Project Grants is only about $5 million (Hodgson, 2012).

Week 8: Reflection

Cobb Preserving Community Gardens Reading

I found it interesting finding out that not all community gardens are located in the urban core, but that’s where you find many of them. They are carved into church grounds, tucked into neighborhoods, nestled into school yards and planted front and center on vacant city lots. These gardens and those who tend them contribute to nurturing our community and make it thrive.

Members of community gardens long for their food to be safe, healthy, and fresh. It is a great feeling when you know how your food is handled, grown, harvested, and transported. This can inspire the reader to make educated decisions about our food choices.

Not only can a community garden help increase using healthy food choices, but it can also lead to other beneficial food projects within the community. For example, the author mentioned that in St. Paul, Minnesota a small children's garden that was established led to a community garden that attracted different cultures to volunteer in the garden. Later on, the volunteers wanted to be able to sell the produce that they cultivated in the community garden. This led to a local farmers market that was culturally diverse. It is safe to say that community gardens can actually be a catalyst to increase awareness within the community and aid to share concerns and interests link to food.

Share Your Garden

Week 8’s readings talk about the several methods in which gardens can benefit cites and people, but it might present itself with shortcomings depending on where it may be situated. Despite of the complications, gardens can be a snowballing initiative in all kinds of neighborhood for better community engagement and education.

Even when there may not be community gardens in several locations, residents can lead by example and set their own private garden. Although it is private, residents can begin community initiatives by sharing gardening techniques or calling for other neighbors to join their efforts. Ideally, the efforts for neighborhood engagement serve as a bottom-up approach to foster urban agriculture.

From my childhood’s memory, I can recall my mother and neighbors gathering and having regular conversations and seldom the garden topics would rise up, discussing the tiny peppers and tomatoes they would get at random times or how the Malay apples would be given away for free since there were so many and the block was covered little pink flowers from the blooming tree. Nowadays, the idea of enhancing a community’s relationship through urban agriculture reminisces old fashioned practices with renewed ideas.

Looking forward to living in a house, a backyard is a great tool to engage with neighbors and getting to know them, either by asking if they garden too or if they can share some insight about their backyard agriculture. Furthermore, it can create linkages between several sectors of the community. For instance, living nearby Frenchtown will allow me to either donate some of my crops or benefit from local community gardens to better my own private lot, creating a locally sustained exchange of agricultural materials. One prime example is iGrow, which can share some of the rich compost in exchange for organic material such as leaves, fruits, and vegetables that might be cut off from gardening maintenance.

Although it is only a small effort, gardening can be the incentive for communities to learn, cooperate, and interact with their surroundings, increasing the likelihood of them participating in activities that might benefit others and develop more sustainable cities.

What are some of your experiences in tending a private or community garden? How have you seen its benefits reflected on the community?