may 20 th, 2015 urban ag visioning meeting © northbound ventures, llc

May 20th, 2015

Urban Ag Visioning Meeting

www.northboundventures.com© Northbound Ventures, LLC

Agenda

Boston Urban Ag Visioning Group

11:00 AM Welcome and Introductions

11:15 AM Visioning Process Review

11:30 AM Initiative Integration

12:00 PM Urban Ag Visioning Charrette

12:30 PM Field Trip (optional)

Big Vision


Visioning Process Review


Origin & Objectives


Origin

Community organization, Article 89 and USDA LFPP Grant

Objectives

1) Establish a five-year vision for supporting urban agriculture in Boston

2) Determine goals, performance metrics, and milestones

3) Assign strategies to participating organizations, aligning skills, and expertise with interest

Grant Interested Parties


Steering Committee


Best Bees, Noah Wilson-Rich Boston Food Forest Coalition, Orion Kriegman Boston Redevelopment Authority, Marie Mercurio Codman Square Neighborhood Development, Jason Boyd Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative, Bayoan Rossello-Cornier Freight Farms, Brad McNamara Green City Growers, Jessie Banhazl NUBIA Seed & Yield Program, Sayed Mohamed-Nour CCK Pearl, Jenn Faigel ReVision Urban Farm, Shani Fletcher The Department of Neighborhood Development, Xaviera Strouble The Food Project, Sutton Kiplinger* The Mayor’s Office of Food Initiatives, Jordan Smith The Trustees of Reservations, Conrad Crawford Trust for Public Land, Kevin Essington Tufts New Entry Sustainable Farming Project, Jennifer Hashley The Boston Foundation, Allison Bauer and Pamela Hung The Kendall Foundation, Andy Kendall Urban Farming Institute, Patricia Spence

Actions to Date


JAN TBF

Launch

SC Announced

Expectations

Offers/Asks

Concerns / Questions

Vision statements

FE

B Seaport

Steering Committee Meeting

Public Meeting

Commercial integration

Guest speakers

MA

R BPL Central

Metrics

Goals

AP

R BPL East Boston

Metrics Insights

Stakeholder Engagement Survey Results

Best Practices

Stakeholder Engagement Survey USDA Mid-Report

Metrics

Number of direct jobs created Number of jobs retained Number of indirect jobs created Number of markets expanded Number of new markets established Market sales increased by $ and by

% Number of farmers/producers that

have benefited from the project - % increase

* Statistically insignificant sample

Lead level in soil Diversity of farmers Ability of urban ag to change personal

behavior # of people engaged in urban farming # of compost produced Community perception of urban ag as

part of green/open space Total # and value of food produced $ invested in urban ag development Profitability of farmers #/$ Food access program Job creation


USDA LFPP Urban Ag Visioning Results*

Urban Ag Best Practices


Vertical Harvest, Jackson Hole, WY Growing Power, Milwaukee, WI Intervale, Burlington, VT Green or Solar Rooftop Requirement, Paris, FR The People’s Grocery, Oakland CA Recover Green Roofs, Somerville, MA Best Bees, Boston, MA Freight Farms, Boston, MA Beacon Hill Food Forest, Seattle, WA Gardening the Community, Springfield, MA Higher Ground, Boston, MA Somerville Mobile Farmers Market, Somerville, MA Korean Natural Farming Workshop, NOFA

US EPA Urban Environmental Program

Food Solutions New England

MA Food Plan

MDAR Urban Agriculture Program

Vision Integration


US EPA UEP

EPA-New England first launched an urban

pilot program in Boston, MA in 1994 when

the Urban Environmental Initiative began.

Since formalization in 2002, the Urban

Environmental Program (UEP) has

expanded its targeted programs to the

urban communities of Chelsea, Holyoke,

Springfield, and Worcester. The

Massachusetts Urban Environmental

Program is designed to improve the urban

environment, address environmental health

concerns, and enhance the quality of life

for urban residents.


Food Solutions New England

Incorporating more than three

years of collaborative research

and input from hundreds of voices

from throughout New England, A

New England Food Vision calls for

our region to reach a bold goal of

50 by 60™ building the capacity

to produce at least 50% of clean,

fair, just and accessible food for all

New Englanders by 2060.


MA Food System Plan

GOALS

1. Increase production, sales and consumption of Massachusetts-grown foods;

2. Create jobs and economic opportunity in food and farming, and improve the wages and skills of food system workers;

3. Protect the land and water needed to produce food, minimize the environmental impact of agriculture, and ensure food safety; and

4. Reduce hunger and food insecurity, increase the availability of fresh, healthy food to all residents, and reduce food waste.


MDAR Urban Ag Program

Launched in 2013, the MDAR Urban

Agriculture Program is one of the nation’s

first state-wide programs to support and

promote commercial urban farming

enterprises. Funding through the program

targets infrastructure needs, innovative food

production, zoning ordinances, technical

assistance, land acquisition, and youth

leadership development. This program is

also designed to build community

partnerships (eg. Massachusetts Urban

Farming Conference and recent Community

Planning Symposium).


Objectives

1) Establish a five-year vision for supporting urban agriculture in Boston

2) Determine goals, performance metrics, and milestones

3) Assign strategies to participating organizations, aligning skills, and

expertise with interest

Group Exercise


Q9: Describe your farming operation. Select all that apply.

Instructions


Review Opportunity

1Plot Site

2Group Report Out

3

Urban Ag Development

You have a near one acre urban lot (~200’ X 200’) with an existing vacant building, (4) stories at 15’ each, which is 50’ x 200’.

You need $100,000 in funding to start an urban agriculture operation.

System options: ground, rooftop, raised bed, container, hoop house, greenhouse, soil-based, hydroponic, aquaponic, hives, hens, etc.

Select the system(s) you will operate and areas you would like to manage with each.

How will your operation function economically?

What “X” factors might you have to consider as you develop the site?

What impact will your operation have on the surrounding community?


Opportunity Statement Instructions

1

© Northbound Ventures, LLC


URBAN AG DEVELOPMENT EXERCISESKETCH YOUR SITE

200’

200’50’

60’

2


Group Report


Where is your site? What system(s) did you select? Funding? Ongoing business model? Partners? What “X” factors did you consider? What results/impacts do you anticipate:

• For the business?• For the community?• For the environment?

What additional information/assistance do you need?

3


Resources & Links

Remaining Meetings

Field Trip (optional)

Reminders


Resources


Urban Ag Visioning Blog City of Boston Website

Resources


BRA DND

Resources Links


Urban Ag Visioning Bloghttps

://bostonurbanag.wordpress.com

City of Boston Website

http://www.cityofboston.gov/food/urbanag/

Boston Redevelopment Authority

http://www.bostonredevelopmentauthority.org

Department of Neighborhood Development

http://dnd.cityofboston.gov

https://bostonurbanag.wordpress.com/

https://bostonurbanag.wordpress.com/




http://www.bostonredevelopmentauthority.org/

http://www.bostonredevelopmentauthority.org/

http://dnd.cityofboston.gov/



Remaining Meetings


Wed. June 17

• 8-10 AM• Spontaneous

Celebrations in Jamaica Plain

• Details & RSVP

Wed. July 15

• 8-10 AM• Wheels Up

Club at Fenway Park

• Details & RSVP

Wed. Aug 19

• 4-6 PM• District Hall in

the Seaport• Details & RS

VP

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/boston-urban-ag-visioning-steering-committee-public-meeting-tickets-17098103889






Field Trip (optional)


DSNI

Food Project Dudley Greenhouse

Food Project Farm

Food Project Farm

Community Garden

Kroc Center

may 20 th, 2015 urban ag visioning meeting © northbound ventures, llc

Documents

urban ag visioning meeting

urban agriculture

jenn faigelrevision

food fitness

value of food

city of boston

boston collaborative

mabeacon hill food forest