RE: Gardens in Hollow Blocks

H* A*

Friends:

I have seen the "secret" gardnens in the McDougal-Sullivan Historical
District and the Turtle Bay gardens. They are lovely but are not public
community gardens in the sense that we know it but more like a private golf
course in a gated community with residential developement around it. 

In both of the cases mentioned in the Atlantic Monthly article, the use of
the land was dictated by the builder/developer/original or later owner. The
garden is a private amenity shared by tenants of  common / adjacent
properties. 

The idea of developing a lowrise hollow block garden in a rental, lower
income area would be highly progressive, but I'd hate to be the guy who had
the job of convincing individual absentee landlords that this would be a
highly beneficial, moneymaking idea. Most individual landlords put money
into fences, concertina wire and alarm systems instead. Most landlords
prefer concrete or slate covered back yards as being "trouble free, without
vermin problems.

Imagine the real estate negociations that would be needed to convince
individual town house owners ( a town house in Manhattan goes from 750K
-17M)  to give up their back yards to connect to a common garden in this
real estate market?  It's wonderful, but alot of folks don't like gardens
unless they are pre- made for them and would not want to deal with the
expense. The idea of picking up a trowel and getting dirt under the
manicured fingernails? Good luck. 

Adam
> -----Original Message-----
> From:	lismdvs@attglobal.net [SMTP:lismdvs@attglobal.net]
> Sent:	Sunday, June 18, 2000 1:31 AM
> To:	community_garden@mallorn.com
> Subject:	Re: [cg] Gardens in Hollow Blocks
> 
> see the article at:
> 
> http://www.theatlantic.com/cgi-bin/o/issues/2000/06/drayton.htm
> 
> Lisa
> 
> Tetrad wrote:
> 
> > Hi, folks!
> >
> > Here's a post for the NE Food Security List.  Anyone seen this article
> or work
> > in the gardens mentioned?
> >
> > Dorene
> >
> > From: gmoke@WORLD.STD.COM (George Mokray)
> > Subject: Gardens in Hollow Blocks
> > Sender: owner-nefood-l@listproc.tufts.edu
> >
> > June _Atlantic Monthly_ has a short article about a model for urban
> gardens
> > >that should be expanded.  "Thousands of blocks with hollow centers
> could
> > >renew themselves and in the process strengthen their surrounding
> > neighborhoods."  The examples used are the Turtle Bay Gardens and the
> > Macdougal-Sullivan Gardens Historic District in New York City as the
> author
> > wonders why this successful design is not used more.
> 
> 
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