https://www.friendlyareaneighbors.org/common-ground-garden.html
Common Ground Garden is an excellent example of people taking initiative in their neighborhood. Friendly N'hood already had a reputation as an eco friendly part of Eugene. There are many front yard gardens, a wonderful neighborhood scale natural food store, an active neighborhood association. Neighbors raised over a million dollars to buy several acres of open space, turning it into a park instead of suburbia.
Common Ground occupies a site that could have been a paved street in a rectangular grid in a 1960's era suburban neighborhood. The street was never built. The site was very soggy, on a slope from a nearby hill. Several neighbors, with support from others went to the city and asked if they could turn the space into a cooperative garden. The city was receptive and outlined a reasonable procedure such as checking with neighbors, understanding the site could become a street and no permanent structures.
Within 6 months of first contact with the city, ground was broken on the garden. There is an immense layer of wood chips over the site, effectively elevating the entire garden above the soggy surface. There are no private spaces, its all for one and all. The garden received two city neighborhood matching grants to build an information kiosk, tools and a tool shed on a property next door. The grants are awarded based on a neighborhood's plan for a project that benefits the neighborhood and the grantees line up sweat equity to match the money from the city.
CGG is a very popular place. There is set of directors. There are scheduled work parties and workshops. There are wheel chair accessible beds. There are always people in the garden. The Garden has an "in" with a local organic garden store to receive starts and damaged garden related goods that can't be sold. CGG, deservedly, is a point of pride in Friendly Neighborhood.
Common Ground occupies a site that could have been a paved street in a rectangular grid in a 1960's era suburban neighborhood. The street was never built. The site was very soggy, on a slope from a nearby hill. Several neighbors, with support from others went to the city and asked if they could turn the space into a cooperative garden. The city was receptive and outlined a reasonable procedure such as checking with neighbors, understanding the site could become a street and no permanent structures.
Within 6 months of first contact with the city, ground was broken on the garden. There is an immense layer of wood chips over the site, effectively elevating the entire garden above the soggy surface. There are no private spaces, its all for one and all. The garden received two city neighborhood matching grants to build an information kiosk, tools and a tool shed on a property next door. The grants are awarded based on a neighborhood's plan for a project that benefits the neighborhood and the grantees line up sweat equity to match the money from the city.
CGG is a very popular place. There is set of directors. There are scheduled work parties and workshops. There are wheel chair accessible beds. There are always people in the garden. The Garden has an "in" with a local organic garden store to receive starts and damaged garden related goods that can't be sold. CGG, deservedly, is a point of pride in Friendly Neighborhood.
