the urban ag project

Prepared by Megan Graham

initial proposal

The initial proposal of The Urban Ag Project evolved from an early assignment about “lighting” a locale. My initial research for that project turned up a few projects that had occurred in large metropolitan cities that were in dire need of reducing wasted land and space. I was so excited about learning more about the transformative power of “lightness”.

initial proposal

During the team review period, one of the questions asked which was of particular interest was, “would you invest in this project?”. It was important, as my team includes those that are sustainably minded provided extraordinary measures are not required. This would be similar to The Urban Ag Project target audience.

detailed plan

The detailed plan was distilled from some of the peer and

instructor comments received as part of the initial proposal.

Looking at team was an interesting piece for me as I was looking at this process with two very distinctive lenses- planning

and implementation. These teams, while supporting my work effort during different

phases are still quite important as sustainable projects should

never truly be completed.

detailed plan

I really enjoyed the layout process of the schematics. I feel like the drawings connected the team to a “tangible” part of the project, rather than just a verbal rendering.

detailed plan

The process map was a tool that I had never used prior to this project. The process mapping tool would have helped me map out the projects in a way that would represent the true iterative process of the projects implementation.

detailed plan

One piece that wasn’t included in the third piece of the project was the city, state, and federal monies that are available to agricultural projects. It was inspiring to see that there are ways to actually implement the project without looking for millions of dollars from investors.

project prototype

I was torn between creating a full business plan or marketing materials for the project prototype. Thinking through the order in which the implementation would follow, I chose to create the business plan. The plan would be a key piece in securing funding from investors which this project was written to support or from grants which were mentioned as part of the detailed plan.

project prototype

project prototype

In my opinion it was very important to detail the benefits of the process of pesticide/herbicide free growing. The Urban Ag Project while innovative on its own, would not be a selling point without detailing why the quality of the product is so important. An area that could have been expanded is the future products section. A fully developed plan on how the product mix could be expanded would show investors that growth is possible and expected as part of the success of The Urban Ag Project.

project prototypeI completed quite a bit of research when it came to the pricing strategy. Many peer comments mentioned my results as well. And while I was not surprise that the cost may be prohibitive for some, I tried to create a structure that would include multiple income levels. From my research;• Memberships range from

$50-$150. (memberships for the most part include voting rights, ability run for elections & board seats, & discounts. 

• CSA's in Minneapolis run between $350-$600 for the growing season ($70-$125 a month)

• Typical timing on the CSA is 17 weeks. (cost per family: $20.58 per week or $1070.59 per year)  

project prototypeI thought it necessary to look at both the break even point as well as the cash flow analysis. Most transactions that will occur will happen via a cash or cash-like basis, the cost of goods sold is very low, and the inventory turn would be close to one. The complexity of the pricing structure actually resulted in a pretty challenging review of the financials. After creating a model that was based on multiple subscription rates, it was clear that it would take multiple cycles of achieving the model to break even. It is rather aggressive and in reviewing for a second time, it looks like the model may set the project up to lose money or rely on commercial clients that were really not the focus of the project.

plans for the future

While I would not be able to undertake a project of this magnitude at this point in my life, I have been looking at ways to extend my urban homestead. There is currently a program available to any Minneapolis resident to rent a vacant lot for $1 (including the paperwork processing fee of $250). There is a 1440 sq. ft. lot available in South Minneapolis that I am currently looking for partners to green.

When I look at the progress of The Urban Ag Project I am proud of the amount of research that I completed. I was invested in the subject matter and the project work. During the process of compiling this final copy there are a few things that I feel would have been appropriate to add during the 3 project iterations and some that could have been left out. As much as it is a good thing – I also felt that maybe I bit off a little more than I could chew for the first project. There were many pieces that I feel did not follow a true narrative as I had already tapped some of the resources for the first project. Another challenge that impacted my process was that I had selected individuals were also in school. Many of my important dates coincided with their important dates as well, so often times it my reviews were not completed when needed. I feel that I could have brought more information regarding Minneapolis and the programs that could or would support The Urban Ag Project and the partnerships that could evolve over time.

While there were challenges, it was an eye opening experience, and inspiring to see that a project of this magnitude could work. I feel like the work here is still just a starting point, and with supplemental research a more complete business plan and strategy could be devised. Working through the pricing strategy and partnering with a financial analyst to create a financial operating model would provide more context to the project. By approaching the subject matter as a case study would create a presentation model worthy of applying for foundation funds and grants.

I am still new to sustainability, and not sure where I will ultimately will end up in the mix, but I am sure that I have a passion for mindfully and sustainably created consumer goods. As a result of this process I at the very least have tools available to represent idea formulation to implementation.

final thoughts & reflections