Expanding Access to Community Gardens

A key item within the Community Climate Action Plan is to develop a food-access policy to ensure underserved residents can achieve healthy and relevant food within a 15-minute walk. Many people with lower incomes live in food deserts — areas that have some food options, but not healthy choices or culturally relevant food. While food items may be purchased at convenience locations, 63 percent of low-income residents are more than half a mile away from a full-service grocery store.

The Community Climate Action Plan makes accessibility to healthy food a priority in all vulnerable neighborhoods. One of the ways it does this is by creating community gardens.

Cedar Rapids has begun the process of expanding the network of community gardens in parks across the city. These plots will increase access to fresh foods,

which will improve food security. The newest community garden will be available at Sinclair Park this spring, and will include ADA-accessible parking, a concrete path to the garden area, and ADA-accessible raised garden beds.

Additional community gardens are being designed for Huston, Reed, Twin Pines, Tokheim, Noelridge, Cherry Hill, and Lincolnway Parks. The locations of the gardens were determined through an extensive communitydriven planning process to develop the City’s first Community Garden Plan. These gardens will be designed based on community feedback related to plot size, availability of raised beds, ADA accessibility, and additional amenities on site, such as fruit trees, seating, tool storage, and more. The adopted Community Garden Plan will also include discussion on garden management, including bed allotment,

fee structure, community partnerships, and garden rules. The draft Community Garden Plan is available on the City’s website (CityofCR.com/Gardens) and is anticipated to be come before the City Council for consideration in April.

Despite the name, community gardens are not for public picking. Garden plots are available for public rental and can only be used by the individual renter. The addition of public plots or donations bins will be considered through implementation of the Community Garden Plan. The City also has plots that have been rented in past years at Ellis Park, Tuma Park, and near Gardner Golf Course.

Interested in renting a community garden plot? Find information about renting garden plots at CityofCR.com/GardenPlots

• A place to get to know your neighbors,

• A learning environment,

• A way to get physical fitness and improve your health,

• Where people of different generations can interact,

• A place to learn about food from other cultures, and

• A way to decrease crime by building community.