Another Urban Garden Installations
The weekend of March 1 marked our first two official installations: one at the home of Jean Shortsleeve in south Garland and then one at the home of the Chris Kahl family in north Garland. The Kahl installation was attended by Mayor Douglas Athas who presented the Kahl family with an award making them official urban farmers.
Garland Mayor Doug Athas with the Kahl family--participants in Loving Garland Green's
Another Urban Garden program. Read more about the program here.
With over 80 percent of the American population living in metropolitan centers, urban farming has the ability to dramatically enhance economic growth, increase food quality, and build healthier communities. We in Garland are lucky to have a mayor who understands the value of urban gardens.
The economic benefits realized through urban farming are localized, thus keeping dollars circulating through the community. These urban farms also have a fantastic return on investment, with every $1 invested in a community garden generating $6 worth of vegetables.
And these community food enterprises are actually competitive with big-box retailers. As one report puts it:
“In recent years CFEs have discovered that they actually have unique advantages over bigger companies. They have a deeper awareness of local tastes and markets, they can obtain consumer feedback more quickly, and they can tweak their business models more swiftly. They can deliver goods and services faster, with shorter distribution links and smaller inventories. They can rely more on word-of¬mouth advertising that costs nothing.”
