Burien

Feasibility of Community Gardens

Community Garden Team

Maddie BeedersGarrett GerlachDevin MyersBrandon PietenpolMolly Thornton

Clients:Scott GreenbergCommunity Development Director

Stephanie JewettCity Planner

Plotting Community Gardens

What?-Define Garden-Physical Design

-Service Standard

Who?-Public vs. Private

-Funders-Operations/Management

Where?-Suitable properties

-Locations -Community places

How?-Policy Issues

-Residential compatibility-Abandonment/Re-use

City of Burien

Total Population:31,881 people

Racial Demographics:76% white5% African-American7% Asian

Total Population:31,881 people

Racial Demographics:76% white5% African-American7% Asian

Driving Tour Destinations

• City Hall• Community Center • Public Library• Public Parks• Community Garden• Residential Neighborhoods

Burien Community Garden

Area Case Studies

• Alleycat Acres: Urban Farm Collective

• Bainbridge Island Community Garden

• Seattle P-Patch Program• Tukwila, Allentown

P-Patch Program

Challenges- Client Communication

• Not being able to solidify a scope of work from the client slowing progress• Lots of information gathered, needs to focus in on certain pieces of it

Preparations for Client MeetingWhat are the issues in Burien that motivate your interest in community garden feasibility?• Does the city of Burien have a significant low-income population? Is there food

scarcity/access issues in this area? • What is the community like? Are there unique cultural needs related to food in this area? • We have noticed there are initiatives already in existence that may relate to community

gardens. What partnerships already exist? What is the City of Burien’s relationship to PROS master plan, HEAL Grant?

What are your priorities? What can we do for you in this time period ?• What is going on with the current community garden you have running? • Who are the key stakeholders in the city of Burien related to this project?• What are the potential organizations that would take on a project such as this?• Does the city have multiple open areas that could potentially be converted to community

gardens?

Timeline Progress

• Potential Deliverables: Survey and GIS of potential locations for P-Patches

• Organizing Data in preparation for meetings and report

• Meeting later than planned set timeline back, interview needed to refine project

Update from Client Meeting• CCPW/HEAL grant recipient with Food Access (Community

Garden) policy component– Externally motivated project– Neutral about relevancy to current city interests

• Exploring avenues to community gardens– Criteria and regulations– Use of private land and grassroots involvement

How can the City of Burien accommodate community gardening through its policies?

What’s Next?

• Basics and Blueprint: Solidly Define Community Gardens

• Focus research on Private-land community gardens

• Discover pitfalls and obstacles faced• Consider partnerships within Burien city and

grassroots• Recommend policy accommodations

Sources

http://www.census.gov/prod/www/abs/decennial/index.htmlhttp://www.ci.tukwila.wa.us/recreation/pkallen.htmlhttp://www.alleycatacres.com/http://www.burienwa.gov/