On Tuesday, June 13th, at 6 p.m., the Portland Public Schools (PPS) Board will hear public comment and consider the permanent closure of the Harrison Park Community Garden. Community gardeners and Jade District residents who rely on the public green space have initiated a petition urging PPS to reconsider their decision. Removing this urban micro-farming location will severely limit garden access for the culturally diverse population in the community and hamper district initiatives to expand green spaces.
In 2015, the Jade District group initiated the Harrison Park Community Garden‘s creation. It filled a gap in green space for area residents and made urban farming more accessible with multilingual sign-up sheets and instructions. The City of Portland has a long history with community gardens dating back to 1975. Portland Parks and Recreation (PP&R) operates 60 Community Gardens located throughout Portland. However, those facilities are not always reasonably accessible to every Portlander. The closest alternative to the Jade District location is the Berrydale Community Garden, whose limited space may not support the displaced gardeners.
The community garden supporters sent a letter to the PPS Board outlining the importance of the space and suggesting alternatives to a full closure and removal of the public green space. In the public letter, the authors explain that “many residents who utilize the garden do so to grow culturally specific varieties [of produce] that they are otherwise unable to find in Portland. It allows lower-income residents, renters, and those living in apartments to be able to access healthy nutritious foods at a lower cost than grocery stores.” They ask that people support the petition and come to the School Board Meeting held at 501 N Dixon Street or email letters to publiccomment@pps.net.
PPS is removing the garden to make way for expanded education space. If the board does not overturn the PPS staff’s decision, demolition of the now overgrown garden will occur sometime next month. People interested in providing comments should do so before Tuesday at 6 p.m. and look for updates regarding this community garden in the coming weeks.
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