SOLEfood Inner City Farm: A Source of Food and Jobs for Vancouver's Dowtown Eastside
On Saturday, October 31st, a vacant lot beside the Astoria Hotel became a half-acre inner-city farm that will generate jobs and food for the Downtown Eastside. Around fifty volunteers came out to build the SOLEfood farm.
Although this garden will contribute beauty and build community, it is different than other community gardens. Sean Dory of United We Can explained "the sole purpose of this garden is to grow food and provide employment opportunities for Vancouver’s inner-city residents.” The food will be grown according to the needs of inner city agencies, such as the Potluck Café and numerous community kitchens.
United We Can has collaborated with Building Opportunities with Business (BOB) to create a horticultural training program for 12 inner-city residents. After completing the training program, these 12 residents will be employed by United We Can to garden, tend harvests, and educate the community.
This garden is part of a larger movement. According to Kira Gerwing, a Vancouver City Planner, “This is part of an emerging green economy program that our department is developing. The green economy program report will go to Vancouver City Council in January 2010. It will have elements of urban agriculture, but it will also talk about green roofs and public realm infrastructure that can demarcate this neighbourhood as a green zone."
City Councilors, such as Andrea Reimer understand the multifaceted benefits of inner-city farms. Councilor Reimer discussed these benefits in a previous interview, "The movement is all about finding ways to provide people with the framework they need to feed themselves, rather than simply giving them food. And that's very cool."
For more information, check out:http://greeningtheinnercity.ca/
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