DRAFT WHO IS GROWING FROM THE ROOT FOR? FOR GROWERS This plan is for people who have been doing this selfdetermined community work for generations, people who just started because of the COVID-19 pandemic, people who do this for survival, and people who do this for the safety and mental health of the kids on their block. It is for everyone who grows food, medicine, flowers, pollinator gardens and orchards in the city, everyone who stewards animals and the land, all seed keepers and seed rematriators, all food and land justice educators, all organizers and advocates, everyone who wants to make a living from agricultural work, everyone who wants to learn about agriculture and be the next generation of growers, and everyone who wants a healthier, more just local food system that centers BIPOC presence/resistance/histories/and ancestral knowledge and practices. The plan is for young people looking to learn about farming and for elders who have knowledge and experience to share. It lays the groundwork for formerly incarcerated residents in need of work to create new connections within the community, and it honors Indigenous people who are still here and whose ancestors first inhabited and stewarded this land.
FOR CITY AGENCIES This plan is also for the City agencies poised to invest in and help evolve our local food system. These agencies are key in moving Philadelphia toward a system that is more just -- one that understands the value of urban agriculture, honors the visions and needs of residents who make up the urban agriculture constituency, and contributes to realizing those visions. This includes members of City Council who will be responsible for supporting the plan, crafting legislation that supports the ideas contained in the plan, supporting land use decisions that protect and expand the footprint of agriculture in their districts, and approving budgets that enable plan implementation. This also includes City agencies or entities whose work intersects with urban agriculture, among them: > Philadelphia Parks & Recreation and its Farm Philly program, which supports 60 farming projects on Parks & Rec land, including youth education gardens, community
gardens, vegetable farms, orchards, community composting programs, and a public greenhouse for growing seeds and plant cuttings. Farm Philly also advocates for agriculture, works to inform City food policy, and supports the growth of urban farming in the city. > The Philadelphia Land Bank, established in 2014 and housed at the Philadelphia Housing Development Corporation, which manages the City’s portfolio of surplus property and grants leases to gardeners and farmers tending public property, to acquire privately owned, vacant, tax-delinquent properties for garden preservation, and to transfer surplus public properties that host gardens and farms to private owners who will steward those growing spaces. > Philadelphia City Council members, who are responsible for representing their constituents. District Council offices field requests for land and are key players in the Land Bank’s process to acquire or dispose of property. They legislatively approve all transfers of land into and out of the Land Bank. City Council also approves the City’s budget each year. > The Philadelphia City Planning Commission, which drafts changes to the Zoning Code, advises on land use and development decisions, and undertakes comprehensive planning efforts for the City, including strategies that support urban agriculture. > The Office of Sustainability, whose Greenworks Plan includes policies and strategies to increase access to healthy food and drinking water, reduce emissions, improve air quality, preserve natural resources, and reduce waste. > The Department of Public Health’s Division of Chronic Disease and Injury Prevention, which works to ensure access to affordable, nutritious food choices for residents citywide and develop good food purchasing policies and standards for City meal programs. > The Philadelphia Water Department, whose programs provide water access and stormwater fee exemptions for urban farmers. > The Philadelphia Department of Prisons, which has converted unused green space into a smallscale farm, orchard, and compost facility that offer agricultural workforce development and re-entry support for incarcerated individuals.
GROWING FROM THE ROOT: PHILADELPHIA’S URBAN AGRICULTURE PLAN
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