Urban Ag Policy, Practice and Challenges
Urban Farming Policy, Practice and Challenges A snapshot of the
dialectical relationship between public and private sector in
Vancouver 2010-2014
Urban agriculture (Growing side ex:) Community gardensPrivate
gardensDemonstration projects Commercial urban farmingLawn
conversionsRooftop farmingContainer farmingRaised bed (contained)
brownfields and parking lots
Urban Agriculture (storage & processing side ex:)Cold
storageWashing and packagingDistribution (CSA, SPUD.ca, farmers
markets, direct to F&B etc.)Waste management (lumping it in
here)CompostingVermiculture District energy (biomass)
Commercial urban farming2009 City of Vancouver launches the
Greenest City Action Plan2010 Building Opportunities with Business
convenes urban ag practitioners, academics and others to discuss
whos doing what.This in response to challenges supporting the
formation of an Urban Farm Network in the DTESFormed the Vancouver
Urban Farming Network (group), which became the Vancouver Urban
Farming Society (VUFS)
VUFS Organized the first Vancouver Urban Farming Forum (Policy
barriers the focus of 1st event)Attendees from all over BC and
Washington StateHave been three more since then looking at capacity
building and resource sharing, best practices Worked with UBC Grad
Student Marc Shutzbank to create and administer the citys first
Urban Farming Census
Feb 2010
Will Allen speaks to VUFS (VUFN) Nov 2010
March 2011 identifying key issues and setting priorities
Vancouver Urban Farming Forum October 2011
SFU Woodwards
Urban Stream a Founding MemberVUFS has held two major urban
farming forums in Vancouver to examine issues of policy and
regulatory barriers and best practices or emerging trends in urban
agriculture and urban farming more specificallyLiaises with
Vancouver Food Policy Council and with Social Planning (COV) and
collaborates with numerous partners to build capacity and give
professional development support as well as policy advocacy voice
to urban food growers (of which there are more than you might
think)
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VUFSWorked closely with COV Social Planning team responsible for
drafting up Vancouvers Food Strategy
Why are people farming in the city?
Improve Food Security and Food AccessSocial Justice and
Community Economic DevelopmentEducation Community Building Fetish
(Gourmands) my opinion onlyBecause they can, and why not?Etc.
What kinds of barriers are they facing? Access to capital (debt
and/or equity financing)Formal legitimacy (business licenses,
permits, insurance)Nuisance bylaws and complaintsTenure of
landScalability Making a profit and being self sustaining (off-farm
income still making up a large portion)
How are they adjusting?
SOLEfood
Partnership with private property owner, underutilized lot
SOLEfood cont
Partnership with corporate commercial property owner, vacant
lot
Sky Harvest
Rooftop and indoor, year round micro-greens
Local Garden (Alterrus)
Partnership with COV, underutilized rooftop of a parkade
Urban Stream
Partnership with commercial leaseholder, portion of parking
lot
Urban Stream
Indoor, shipping container, year round growing and on-site
composting
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Vancouver Food Pedalers Cooperative
Partnership with industrial property leaseholder, modified
shipping container
Vancouver Urban Food Pedalers Cooperative
Year round micro-greens, pedal delivery
Inner City Farms
Lawn conversions partnership with residential property owner or
tenants
Fresh Roots
Institutional partnership, K-12 Schools, educational
component
Urban Farming and the DTESPHS Urban FarmImproving the quality of
meal programs in social housingCapacity building for low-income
residentsCommunity building Mark Brand Food systems infrastructure,
tokensPotluck Caf and CateringDTES Kitchen Tables Network,
Charitable Food SystemSkill Dev and Training SOLEFoodEmployment
based social enterprise Skill Dev and Training
Where does urban farming happen in Vancouver?Everywhere! Is that
a good thing?Good question!Thanks, WesWhat are the alternatives?
Urban Ag Zone? Easing approved uses in several areas? Attaching
provisions to existing zoning? Laissez Faire (until someone gets
anthrax)
Case study (barriers)
Hard to regulate something that doesnt exist.
Company founded in 2009, grew out of UBC Applied Engineering
Thesis Reaching numerous GCAP Goals (green jobs, food scraps
diversion, food production)
2nd unit was under production when a concerned neighbour
contacted the City to complain that someone was doing something in
a shipping containerCity enforces a stop-work order and
subsequently massacres our design with a bunch of risk management
features that treat our unit like we were building a condo
tower.
Sets us back several months and nearly bankrupts the company as
drafting, architectural and other consulting fees begin to add up
as per the Citys numerous requirements.
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Questions? Comments? Complaints?
Wes Reganhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/wesleyregan
[email protected]
Questions? Comments? Complaints?
Wes Reganhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/wesleyregan
[email protected]
