project leader
dagass
location
49 Hollingsworth St.
(The Highlands)
latest update rss
No updates yet.

the project

We aim to empower neighbors while changing the environment with:

  • A community garden at the Cook St. Park.
    Working with The Food Project, we built 25 private vegetable gardens last year!
  • A hoop house for aquaponics, where fish are raised and vegetables grown without soil, year-round.
    We managed aquaponics for two years. All 600 school-children work with us!
  • A food preservation co-op.
    We sold 320 locally-bottled jars of tomato sauce.  A coop will make locally-grown food available year-round!
  • The HEY Club (Healthy Eating Youth) - nine families / 15 malnourished (mainly obese) children who work with a Food Corp member on food and fitness issues.

the steps

This Spring we proposed to the City to create a community garden in a park racked by fights and gang activity. More than 150 neighbors and 10 gardeners signed on to our plan. 

We are close to gaining City approval. The City will host summer activities for the first time in ten years. A neighbor agreed to let us tie into his downspouts for a cistern. With approvals, we will build the garden.

The school garden, built on asphalt, now has an all-weather aquaponics system and 30 vegetables. 50 low-income youth will work with us this summer, learning about botany and nutrition while having a lot of fun and weekly meals from the crops. 

Check out our website for more information!

why we're doing it

We work with neighbors for environmental and social changes in the Highlands, an historic area of 1.5 sq. mi. and 11,000 residents with an MFI annual income of $31,000.  We build gardens and rehab parks, and promote healthy living. We train college-aged youth to work with school-aged youth on health and environmental issues.  We work on issues such as voting rights, youth jobs, anti-crime, foreclosure and eviction-prevention.

budget

Cistern -3/250 gallon tanks, pump        $ 1,500  

Hose, shovels - 50 flat hose, 6 shovels  $    500

Fencing - 3' high, to keep dogs out        $ 1,500

Miscel - tools, storage cabinets             $     500  

Picnic benches (2) for work/lunches      $     500

Labor - one adult, two youth                 $  2,500 

Total = $7,000 - $1,500 GROW grant from NEGEF = $5,500

Third party credit card processing (3%) = $165
ioby materials and labor = $35

Total to raise = $5,700

updates

Sorry, but this project doesn't have any updates yet.

photos

This is where photos will go once we build flickr integration

donors

  • Rachel W.
  • Erin B.
  • .