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Committee backs resolution to inventory and preserve land for urban agriculture
Summary
The committee voted to send a resolution to the full Board urging evaluation and allocation of appropriate properties for urban agriculture, citing the recent loss of Little City Gardens and demand for community garden plots.
The Land Use & Transportation Committee on April 17 voted to forward a resolution that reaffirms San Francisco’s support for urban agriculture and urges the city to evaluate and allocate appropriate properties for community farming.
Supervisor Hillary Ronan, co-sponsor of the resolution, said the proposal responds to the closure of Little City Gardens and recent policy groundwork dating to Executive Directive 9-03 and the 2011 planning code changes that enabled urban agriculture in all zones. "This resolution reaffirms San Francisco's commitment to evaluate and allocate properties for urban agriculture," Ronan told the committee.
Rec & Park reported current program capacity and demand: Mei Ling, the department’s new urban-ag and community gardens program manager, said Rec & Park oversees a network of 39 community gardens with about 1,100 plots and that more than 3,500 people are on wait lists for garden plots; she described ongoing coordination work among city agencies.
Public testimony highlighted the benefits and urgency: speakers from the San Francisco Bee Cause, Little City Gardens, SPUR, the Greenhouse Project and neighborhood groups urged the city to identify and preserve sites — including some surplus, flood-prone or otherwise marginal parcels — that are unsuitable for housing but appropriate for urban agriculture. Lucia Pullman of the Greenhouse Project pointed to 770 Woolsey Street as a promising parcel.
Outcome: Supervisor Ronan moved to send the resolution to the full Board with a positive recommendation; the committee approved the motion without objection and the resolution will be considered by the Board.
Next steps: The resolution asks city departments to evaluate a limited set of suitable sites, consider long-term land tenure consistent with AB 551 urban-ag incentive zone provisions, and coordinate across Rec & Park, the Public Utilities Commission and other agencies to prioritize equity and food-access deserts.
