Las Vegas officials hope mass-produced “urban farms” at historic Westside parks will help address food shortages in the area.
The development was secured through a public-private partnership involving MGM Resorts International. MGM Resorts International donated his $500,000 to the City of Las Vegas to purchase two climate-controlled hydroponic containers that grow produce, houseplants, and flowers year-round.
The park, which now houses farm operations, was closed in 2013 to clear a homeless camp, but reopened last month under a new name, James Gay Park. Desegregating the Las Vegas Strip in the 1960s.”
Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman, Las Vegas City Councilman Cedric Clare (5th Ward), MGM Executive Anthony Williams and others celebrated the farm’s April 12th opening with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Clare said the HUNDRED Plan, or Historic Urban Neighborhood Design Redevelopment Plan, was the driving force behind the project.
“Today’s opening of Urban Farm represents the revitalization and reimagining of the park, which is beginning to open in phases,” said Claire, who owns the ward that includes the park and is running for mayor next year. I’m here.
According to Clare, the farm is not only a local food source that can supply residents with the existing Mario’s Westside Market and a planned cooperative grocery store in James Gay Park, but also a community gathering and It is also a venue for cultural and educational programs.
The high-tech farm is expected to produce as much produce as normal on its 3.5 acres. This means that one harvest will produce 8 tons of produce and the first harvest is scheduled for this month. Maintenance and harvesting will be managed by urban farmers Ronald Voight and Thomas Brandt, who own Las Vegas-based Agricultural Solutions Services.
Earlier this year, KNPR reported that one in four residents of Las Vegas’ Historic West Side was food insecure, the highest rate in Las Vegas. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, a person is food insecure if they cannot reliably obtain nutritionally adequate food due to low household income or lack of access to full-service supermarkets.
Goodman told an audience of about 50 people that the container would grow green beans, Nevada lettuce, parsley, arugula, collard greens, basil, coriander and bok choy.bright green Nevada lettuce Lactuca Sativa, A crisp, buttery lettuce that can grow in any climate and is highly heat tolerant.
“Many of us take for granted that our families grew up eating the freshest fruits and vegetables that were readily available,” Goodman said. Access to fresh produce was impractical for people.”
The farm comes three years after neighboring community advocates confronted the owner for consistently selling unsanitary food at the Fresh and Res on Owens Avenue and J Street.
Part of the West Side is also designated as a food desert. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) applies where the region “lacks access to food that produces affordable fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat milk, and other foods.” increase. Eat a full and healthy diet. ” If a grocery store is more than a mile away from a low-income census block, the area is considered less accessible.
Modeling a similar project in Denver, community residents receive discounts on food purchases on the farm, food stamp recipients receive food for free, and residents living outside the community receive market prices. pay.
“We have traveled the country to research best practices on homelessness issues, neighborhood health issues, and revitalizing underserved communities,” says Clear. “And I saw this product in action in Denver.”
When asked if the container would overshadow a nearby community farm just a block away, Tammy Maritch, director of the City of Las Vegas’ Youth and Social Initiatives, said the two farms serve different purposes and actually do. said they complement each other.
“this [system] Grow on steroids…we’re growing 365 days a year,” Malich said of the urban farming containers. It continues to grow and I believe it will always be outdoors on a spring day.”
She also notes that the Historic Westside needs multiple food sources, and along with nearby community farm The Obodo Collective, the two gardens will support families across the valley with workshops on farming and community outreach. Said to increase healthy eating options.
According to Maric, the team developing Urban Farm has carefully considered how the project fits into the community and respects the gay heritage that gave the park its name.
“He in particular has made an incredible contribution to this community that people don’t know about,” she said. “We are already brainstorming how to create wayfinding signs and sidewalks that provide information and highlights about him so that people, especially future generations, can get to know him. .”
“We are getting things done”
Claire said everyone he spoke to was very happy with the progress at the Historic Westside.
“In my opinion [the park] We are showing residents that we are actually doing what we say we are going to do,” he said. “It’s important because for years nothing has happened. There’s been no movement in our community, and they’re seeing action happening.”
Wendell West, 63, is a local real estate agent who has been selling homes in West Las Vegas for over 30 years and attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony last month. He says the farm represents a new development for the community, but it also sets things up during the region’s Black cultural renaissance, when mid-century anti-Black laws kept African Americans in the West. Said it has a long way to go back…the Las Vegas side.
The conquered black community developed businesses, nightclubs, cultural events, and casinos. time magazine June 1955.
West said he attends all community meetings on the redevelopment of the Historic Westside and hopes to bring a casino to the area, as well as “more roof” in the neighborhood.
“I know all about what’s going on,” he said. “I just want to see it finished. For years we started something but it was never finished. It always stopped.”
After decades of stalled revitalization plans, Claire and then-Clark County Commissioner Lawrence Weekly announced that in 2020, the updated version of the HUNDRED plan would be announced by leaders using new resources. I warned people that I was planning ahead.
Since then, there have been several new additions, including the Jackson Avenue Complete Street project, which broke ground in December, the Historic Westside School’s College of Southern Nevada Workforce Development Center, an 84-unit housing development planned on Jackson Avenue, and interlocking plans. Development has started. toward the reconstruction and relocation of the West Las Vegas Library. Clare said the project was “a long wait, but the best is yet to come.”
There were many plans before the Hundred Plans, but it wasn’t until 2015 that the Historic Westside became a designated area by the Las Vegas Redevelopment Authority (RDA), according to the city’s website. The area has a history of paybacks dating back to 1944, when residents began to plead for simple amenities such as paved roads, electricity and sewers. Areas included in the RDA plan are zones in which city authorities assist planning and development through tax incentives, land discounts, or policy changes.
City leaders plan the future of their local working-class communities, but they sometimes experience backlash from residents who fear changes will rob them of resources or displace them. An example of this was last February. Cear faced public distrust after seeking to relocate, upgrade, and expand the West Las Vegas Library.
But he defends his work.
“The bottom line is that we’re getting things done… come here and see what we’re doing,” said Claire.