Agenda - Planning Commission - 06/03/2010

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coptmst to prior gardening movements, these relief and victory gardens were legitimized and supported by federal govemment educa- tioncampaigns, and they provided nutrition and psychological support in hard times. Retail grocers have displaced the decentralized food production of urban gardening efforts. Thus, instead of federal efforts to foster gardening as the urbanite's "citizen duty," gardening became the sub- - urbanite's hobby. As the role of government faded, urban gardening became a niche activity until revived by concerns in the i96osand'7osovertheenergycrisis,food quality and price, environmental problems, and urban decline. Unlike in the past, how- ever, govemment ignored this reemergence. Instead, gardens were part of community organizing efforts that spawned many local and national organizations devoted to com- munitygreening in abroad social and physi- calsense. Overthe course ofthe nextfew decades gardeninggainedmomentum, and numerous organizations sprang up to experi- mentwithnew models of intensive urban agriculture to generate income, particularly in deindustrialized cities with ample vacant land and not enough jobs. In the ig9os and zooos, urban agricul- ture was marginalized and occasionally im- periled by the development boom and gen- trification.However, responsive cities began formulating policy to protect and encourage urban agriculture in response to community pressure, but also from [he recognition that urban agriculture can improve public health, contribute to neighborhood revitalization and community economic development, and help promote"green"cities. Efforts by cities td foster urban agricuf- turetake various forms. Roughly, they play three roles: t. to address urban agriculture as a mmpo- vent ofland-use and food policy in planning processes; z. to create, enable, orfund community garden programs and urban agriculture or- ganizations;and 9. to create zoning and permitting processes that are friend ly to urban agriculture. While the bulk of our discussion will focus on zoning, we will start with an over- view ofother planning and programming techniques that cities use to support urban agriculture. URBAN AGRICULTURE IN THE PLANNING PROCESS Food policycouncils (FPCs) are a relatively recent organizational innovation. They typi- callyoperate atthe city or county level, some- ©This map of ~=~ Portland's zoning +~~ as it relates to agricultural comes from Phaselof the Diggable City project. It was pro- ~zy duced by a team of Portland= State University graduate students and presented to the city. The city continued [he process in two further phases, and the resulting reports inform Portland's urban agriculture policy. times in collaboration with government and community members and sometimes as a nongovernmental advocacy effort. They often include experts in health, farming; planning, education, and food access.The Portland/ Multnomah County Food Policy Council in Oregon exemplifies a "strong" version of a FPC.in that it seeks to develop policy and advise government in policy implementation. In Portland, the FPC interfaces directlywith a city officialwho coordinates programs related to urban agriculture and local food. Portland describes its food systems plann ing efforts in two reports: Diggable City (zoos), which includes an inventory ofthe city's available vacant land and a map ofthe city color-coded by how its zoning affects urban agriculture, and Food Cortology(zoo8), which explains the benefits of streetfood and includes de- sign requirements for food carts. ZONINGPRACTICE a.io PMERICAN PLWNING ASSOCNTONp09es n