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City Rakes Seed Money from Community Gardens

Community garden advocacy groups want the city to ease the burden on those looking to start urban gardens. They claim the gardens help neighborhoods become sustainable, promote a healthy lifestyle, soak up storm water, and raise property values.

In response, a coalition of urban gardeners created a petition and have gathered more than 1100 signatures, all in support of easing the requirements on those looking to till undeveloped city land, including blighted redevelopment project areas.

The "Make San Diego Community Garden Friendly" campaign urges city officials to streamline the permitting process, establish an affordable permit fee, and commission a citizen taskforce to identify potential garden plots.

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Most importantly, the campaign asks that the City trim the deposit for a community garden permit.

Currently, the City requires applicants submit professional plans with a $5000 deposit, which, according to the petition, goes toward paying City staff's rate of $82 to $144 per hour.

"The initial deposit of $5000 for a community garden permit is stopping future gardens before they even begin," said Diane Moss during the December 8 Land Use and Housing Committee meeting.

Moss was recently successful in securing a plot of land in Mount Hope and procuring a $50,000 pledge from Southeastern Economic Development Corporation, with some help from District 4 representative Tony Young.

"Many more gardens can't even be considered because zoning prohibits community gardens in commercial zones," Moss told committee members. "The need for land development permits is unnecessary and administratively burdensome."

Some members of the community, however, are drawing a line in the sand in regards to community gardens.

During the meeting, Jim Varnadore, chair of the City Heights Planning Committee warned committee members about an outcropping of urban gardens in San Diego neighborhoods.

"Kindly don't do anything on that without consulting the [neighborhood] committees and the communities," said Varnadore. "Not all of us have the same view of community gardens. Not all of us are happy seeing the gardens started. Some of us have to look at them when they are harvested and finished and ugly."

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Community garden advocacy groups want the city to ease the burden on those looking to start urban gardens. They claim the gardens help neighborhoods become sustainable, promote a healthy lifestyle, soak up storm water, and raise property values.

In response, a coalition of urban gardeners created a petition and have gathered more than 1100 signatures, all in support of easing the requirements on those looking to till undeveloped city land, including blighted redevelopment project areas.

The "Make San Diego Community Garden Friendly" campaign urges city officials to streamline the permitting process, establish an affordable permit fee, and commission a citizen taskforce to identify potential garden plots.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Most importantly, the campaign asks that the City trim the deposit for a community garden permit.

Currently, the City requires applicants submit professional plans with a $5000 deposit, which, according to the petition, goes toward paying City staff's rate of $82 to $144 per hour.

"The initial deposit of $5000 for a community garden permit is stopping future gardens before they even begin," said Diane Moss during the December 8 Land Use and Housing Committee meeting.

Moss was recently successful in securing a plot of land in Mount Hope and procuring a $50,000 pledge from Southeastern Economic Development Corporation, with some help from District 4 representative Tony Young.

"Many more gardens can't even be considered because zoning prohibits community gardens in commercial zones," Moss told committee members. "The need for land development permits is unnecessary and administratively burdensome."

Some members of the community, however, are drawing a line in the sand in regards to community gardens.

During the meeting, Jim Varnadore, chair of the City Heights Planning Committee warned committee members about an outcropping of urban gardens in San Diego neighborhoods.

"Kindly don't do anything on that without consulting the [neighborhood] committees and the communities," said Varnadore. "Not all of us have the same view of community gardens. Not all of us are happy seeing the gardens started. Some of us have to look at them when they are harvested and finished and ugly."

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Stunning sycamores, Mars rising
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4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
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