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Urban Farm Feeds the Neighborhood |
By Stephen Gabriel
NORTHAMPTON, MA - A young and vibrant group of activists has redefined the meaning of "local" food by farming city land for the benefit of the neighborhood located near downtown. The Montview Neighborhood Farm is a community supported agriculture (CSA) project which is entirely human powered, mostly from the labor of 5 local residents with one central goal. "We are envisioning a food system that is not based on petroleum," says co-founder Lisa DePino. The farm also addresses local food security, declining fossil fuels, meaningful employment, community building, and urban land use.
The farm operates on 3.2 acres of city-owned conservation land which was leased to the collective after months of dialog with the Conservation Commission, which had recently approved organic farming on other parcels of city land. In November of 2005 the work began! The group encouraged local landscapers, farmers and neighborhood residents to drop off leaves, wood chips, and composted manure to help jump start the new piece of land that had not been farmed in many years. "The whole farm is built off of waste products," notes DePino. Surplus seedlings from local farms and cardboard from a nearby door factory feed the project which in turn feeds the community.
The project is run entirely by volunteers, promoting connections between people in the neighborhood and the completion of the many tasks of this human-powered operation. In its first year, the farm fed 12 member households and sold produce at an on site farm stand. The group offered "punch-card" memberships, whereby customers could pre-purchase a card at comfortable monetary levels. This secures funding up front when the money is most needed and also offers the customer a discount for guaranteeing a certain amount of business.
Plans for the coming season include doubling member size, designing and building a permaculture food forest and outdoor classroom for workshops, and creating an "edible neighborhood" by spreading food production into the lawns and gardens of Montview neighborhood residents.
Contact: Montview Neighborhood Farm
(413) 825-6795 x306
www.montviewfarm.org
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