DURHAM COUNTY’S URBAN GARDEN OASIS Nestled across 45 acres in East Durham – close to Durham Technical Community College – the Briggs Avenue Community Garden is a haven of calm, green, and get-yourhands-dirty fun for everyone! When you stop by the entrance to the garden, located at 1312 South Briggs Avenue, especially in the spring and summer, but all year – you’ll notice the wonderful smells of fresh produce, spices, flowers, and so much more growing and thriving under the watchful eyes of Durham County Extension Agent Cheralyn Berry and Program Assistant Gaebryl Vives – along with hundreds of local volunteers. “It really is an oasis,” Berry said. “We are so lucky to have this land in the middle of Durham that will always be here for
We are so lucky to have this land in the middle of Durham that will always be here for everyone to enjoy. 24 DCo Life Magazine | Winter 2024
everyone to enjoy. It will never be high-rise buildings. It will be trees and flowers and gardens of fruits and vegetables. And it will be filled with residents enjoying these things!” The land, then valued at $1.35 million, was provided by the Briggs Land Corp., to North Carolina State University. It was then donated by the NC Agricultural Foundation for the use of the Cooperative Extension in 2003. The requirement of the land was that it would be accessible to everyone! It was officially dedicated in 2010 as an agricultural education space. “Any time you can place 40 acres of green space in an area as urban as this, that’s probably a good thing. It’s a real asset to Durham County,” then-N.C. Cooperative Extension Service Foundation Executive Director David Hays told the Durham Herald-Sun in 2003. Cheryl L. Lloyd, the Extension’s Director at the time gave a glimpse into the area’s future in 2003 – “What we often do is help (residents) see what types of things can be done in an urban community that will conserve and support the natural landscape.” It will give our youth a chance to do hands-on science projects and get a physical workout, she added.
