CITY boys and girls gettin' down on the farm!

wheeeeeeeeeeeee! now HERE is something to be excited about: welcome to the neighborhood, hayes valley farm!

as you may recall from earlier posts (like this one), my current neighborhood was once home to the central freeway, built in the 1950s, which many say destroyed the fabric of this diverse place. in 1989, the loma prieta earthquake took down a sizable chuck of the thing and it was eventually demolished in favor of street-level on ramps. and so began a renewal of the area. (or, some would say, an unwanted gentrification by folks like me. we're right on the border of that most famous of neighborhoods which, too, is having an identity crisis.)

the city has moved excruciatingly slowly in development of the MANY lots that now stand empty as a result of the demolition (see left).

but, the upside is that the community is getting creative with proposed uses for these lots. (this looks pretty amazing, in fact!)

hayes valley farm is probably the best i have seen. situated on parcel p, the largest of them all, this farm will take over a sorely neglected - but uniquely situated - plot right in the middle of our neighborhood.

in their own words, hayes valley farm is "an education and research project with a focus on urban agriculture. Situated on city-owned lots bordered by Oak, Fell, Laguna, and Octavia streets, the project is organized by an alliance of urban farmers, educators, and designers that comprise the Hayes Valley Farm Project Team. Hayes Valley Farm is a Parks Partner, a fiscally sponsored project of the San Francisco Parks Trust.

The project is founded on an interim use agreement between Hayes Valley Farm and the City's Office of Economic and Workforce Development- a two to five year time frame - until which time the City moves forward with other development plans for the site.

1. to create a successful, sustainable urban farm where community members can access healthy local food
2. to serve as a model and a resource center for urban agriculture education and green job training
3. to build community resiliency around local food production"

i have been so busy with the house that i haven't yet had a chance to get dirty with my neighbors, but i plan to very soon. it looks like they are having alot of fun over there!

if you live in the neighborhood, get yourself to a work party soon. if not, maybe you can spearhead a similar project where you live -- this stuff ain't just for san francisco hippies!

and, here's hoping that it will stay long past its planned 2-5 years...