Salt Lake City is proud to support Wasatch Community Gardens’ work to grow the City’s robust collection of community gardens. Last month, Salt Lake City and Wasatch Community Gardens (WCG) celebrated the opening of the newest addition: the Richmond Park Community Garden.
Green City Growers
Over the years, Salt Lake City has partnered with WCG through the Green City Growers program to help coordinate the use of city-owned or managed land for community garden plots. The plots are managed by WCG and help Salt Lake City residents build a more robust and sustainable food system.
Come learn about the process a new community garden goes through to get approved. We’re also looking for your input what you would like included in the garden design. Finally, we’ll discuss potential impacts it could bring to the neighborhood.
Salt Lake City celebrated the opening of our newest community garden yesterday!
This is the SEVENTH community garden created through the SLC’s Green City Growers program which began in 2013. The program converts City-owned land into vegetable gardens that are managed by the non-profit Wasatch Community Gardens. Community gardens create solutions for sustainable food production in an urban landscape.
Our newest garden is in the Gateway District which is quickly becoming the densest neighborhood in Utah. Demand for open space and “room to grow” is paramount.
On Tuesday, media representatives and residents joined Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski, CEO of Rocky Mountain Power Cindy Crane, Director of Parks & Public Lands Kristin Riker, and the Wasatch Community Gardens Executive Director Ashley Patterson, for the celebration.
We’d like to thank the many people and organizations who made this vision become a reality! Read more
Today Mayor Ralph Becker gathered with Jeramy Lund of the Community Foundation of Utah, Ashley Patterson of Wasatch Community Gardens and local gardeners to dedicate the Popperton Plots community garden in the Avenues neighborhood.
“Salt Lake City recognizes the important role community gardens play in supporting our local food system,” said Mayor Becker. “We are delighted to dedicate Popperton Plots, the first community garden to open under our expanded Green City Growers program.”
This spring, Green City Growers was awarded $50,000 in grant funds to support the development of two new community gardens including Popperton Plots. The award included $25,000 from Partners for Places, an initiative launched by the Funders’ Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communities and the Urban Sustainability Directors Network (USDN).
Partners for Places is a matching grant program that creates opportunities for cities and counties to improve communities by building partnerships between local government sustainability offices and place-based foundations. The Community Foundation of Utah provided the $25,000 grant match and will manage permanent endowments.
“We are committed to sustainable nonprofits and sustainable communities, and this project is a demonstration of both,” said Community Foundation of Utah Board Chairman Jeramy Lund.
Five additional parcels of city-managed land are currently available for community garden access. Residents are encouraged to review the available parcels on SLCgreen.com and, if interested, complete an application for the organization and creation of a community garden.
Applications are due November 1, 2014.
Salt Lake City works directly with Wasatch Community Gardens and community members to develop gardens within City limits. Wasatch Community Gardens is a community-based nonprofit that has served Salt Lake County for over 25 years.
Green City Growers Open House Wednesday, November 13th from 6-8 p.m. First floor of the Salt Lake City & County Building (451 S. State Street)
The public is invited to come and learn about newly identified parcels of City-owned and operated land now available for the development of community gardens. Information about the Green City Growers application process and available resources will also be provided.
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