Three generations of the Furey family, along with Commissioner Saltzman, cut the ribbon to Furey Field

Saturday, May 14th, 2011 marked the official opening of Zenger Farm’s Furey Field.  This expansion has made possible Zenger Farm Shares, Oregon’s first Community Supported Agriculture program to accept food stamps. The property now also includes a new 30-plot Portland Community Garden, a much-needed resource for low-income households in the surrounding neighborhoods.

Many neighbors, community members, volunteers, city staff and elected officials came together today to celebrate Zenger Farm’s expansion onto the Furey property. After a few hours in the dirt, and with Pine State biscuits in hand, volunteers were treated to remarks from Jill Kuehler of Zenger Farm, Leslie Pohl-Kosbau of Portland Community Gardens, Zari Santner of Portland Parks & Recreation, Commissioner Dan Saltzman, and Emily Hicks on behalf of Commissioner Nick Fish.  Representatives from Mayor Sam Adams’s office, Portland’s Bureau of Environmental Services, the Portland Development Commission, West and East Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation Districts, Powellhurst-Gilbert Neighborhood Association, Gateway Green, Friends of Portland Community Gardens, and other organizations joined the celebration.  It is thanks to the hard work of these individuals and organizations that Furey Field has become a reality.  Congratulations everyone!

Some pictures from the day:

Furey Field from corner of SE Reedway & 119th

Volunteers help plant Zenger Farm Shares seedlings

This future bioswale in the northeast corner of the wooded area will capture and filter stormwater from SE Reedway

Ecotone members celebrate the opening of Furey Field

Thank you to the many neighbors, community members, students, focus group participants, interviewees and advisors who helped make this project possible.

You can download the full report from our “Final Report” page. Please take a look at it and let us know what you think!

Thank you to the more than 15 community members who attended the Growing Zenger Farm open house on Saturday, May 15th at the Zenger farmhouse.

Ecotone and PLACE presented three site design concepts that had been developed using input from the public design workshop on April 25^th and from the project’s technical advisory committee.  During the two-hour open house, visitors ranked the alternatives, gave written feedback via post-it notes, and shared verbal feedback with project coordinators.

Commenting in process

PLACE provides a youth perspective

Mark shares his two cents

Here are photos of the design concept posters at the end of the day:

Concept A

Concept B

Concept C

Concept A was the publically-preferred choice, but comments from all three alternatives were useful and many were incorporated into Ecotone’s subsequent preferred site design.

Here are some of the comments we received:

• ADA accessibility is important
• arbor could have flowers too-arbor is architecturally pleasing, tells neighbors there’s investment; current Zenger gateway is too primitive though and could include seating for gathering space
• more fruit tree buffer
• include educational info kiosk around covered area
• get a grant to purchase the junior acre across from Furey -educational space that can be locked; put educational signs inside the education junior and combination worker housing grant for farming immigrants
• picnic tables are important to get people into nature and to appreciate it
• bees
• compost toilet with lock good! opportunity to use new sustainable technology – yes!
• composting toilet preferred over chemical
• glad to see open space for farming and public use
• porta potty will reduce environmental pollution and erosion from people going off paths
• include information on native plants and animals and the homestead in educational kiosk
• education for schools: make preventing vandalism a high priority
• handicap parking and nose in to provide more parking space
• rezone 117^th for low-density, no apartments!!!!!!!!
• signs are being quickly vandalized….how to prevent???
• yes, tree preservation important
• if boardwalk from bike trail is fenced so that 117^th is not accessible but opens to parkland, the neighbors will be much happier
• zone 117^th for open space
• see this as vision for greenspace sanctuary for 122^nd high-density
• no matter which plan you choose, please save the Doug firs!!!!!!!!!!!

Liz collects feedback from Portland Community Gardens

On May 1st, Ecotone members Elizabeth and Kate attended the Multnomah Food Summit to gather food-related policy information. The summit was the kick-off for the second phase of the Multnomah Food Initiative, a four-phase project to develop and implement a long-term food action plan for the county. The action plan will be developed through December 2010 and implementation will begin in 2011.

The draft action plan has four areas of focus:

• Local Food: Increase viable local options in our food system
• Healthy Eating: Make the healthy choice an easier choice for all
• Social Equity: Build systemic justice, health and food security
• Economic Vitality: Promote a thriving local economy

The day-long summit was a success, with more than 250 individuals and organizations contributing to the action plan dialogue. Attendees participated in three roundtable discussions on the draft action plan framework and priorities, giving diverse food-related organizations opportunities to fill in action area details. There were also several breaks to allow for informal networking, and a number of informative presentations.

Event speakers included Multnomah County Chair Jeff Cogen, Congressman Earl Blumenauer, Multnomah County Commissioner Judy Shiprack, Jon Stubenvoll of the Oregon Food Bank, Latricia Tillman from the Oregon Office of Multicultural Health, Andy Fisher from the Community Food Security Coalition and Judith Bell of PolicyLink.

An oh-so-exciting photo of Saturday morning conference networking

The Zenger farmhouse on the day of the workshop

Design workshop participants making tough decisions

Thanks to the more than 25 community members who attended the Field Trip and Community Design Workshop on Sunday, April 25th! Ecotone gathered a ton of information about the Furey property and about neighbor and Powellhurst-Gilbert resident preferences for development. Your input has provided Ecotone with a great starting point for site design.

We were really lucky that it was a beautiful, mostly sunny day. As a group, we gathered on the Furey property, enjoyed coffee and snacks, then took a tour around the field. We heard stories about the property from longtime residents and started discussing neighbor interests and concerns about development. Here are some of the things Ecotone heard on the field trip:

• Louie the pheasant is a longtime resident of the Furey property – let’s try not to scare him off
• We should build a fence around the future swale so people don’t fall in
• Educational swale signage a good idea
• If a covered educational space is built, it should look like a down home old farmhouse and have signage about the history of the homestead and farming in this part of town
• Many immediate neighbors do not want the streets to be paved due to safety and privacy concerns
• Many neighbors have safety concerns about connecting 117th Ave. to the Springwater Corridor with a trail
• Most residents are happy that the property will not be developed into multi-family housing units
• Would love to have goats brought in to eat the invasive plant species
• Provide trails or green space for dog walkers
• Provide buffer between site activity and neighbor homes

Stacey leads the field trip

The youngest field trip participant

The field trip paused on 117th to discuss roadway and trail concerns

After the field trip, about 2/3 of the group moved up to the Zenger farmhouse for the design workshop component of the day. The group brainstormed site issues, discussed concerns about property development, then broke into four groups to develop initial site layout and design. Participants used large maps, cutouts and markers to propose various layouts that would minimize impacts on neighbors and meet the needs of the broader community.

The group brainstormed before designing

Let the designing begin!

Everyone had something to contribute

Here are some of the ideas and concerns Ecotone heard during the design workshop:

• Place picnic tables close to wetland for wildlife viewing
• Install natural buffer of Oregon grape along west edge of property
• Keep traffic to a minimum
• Nose-in parking spaces on the edge of the field are an option
• Parking lot and community garden in the middle of the property is another option
• Cluster amenities like bathroom and tool shed around parking
• Move Army Corps trail to center of Furey property to keep activity away from neighbors
• Install gate on Army Corps trail to stop vagrancy
• Move Army Corps trail and make it curvy with side paths connecting wetland with property in more places
• Remove invasive plants from wetland area
• No bees or chickens should be at Furey because they are too high maintenance
• Place community garden on northwest corner of property
• Plant fruit trees
• Put in non-traditional play equipment for neighborhood kids
• Don’t make this a destination for people to drive to for kids to play

There was a wide range of design ideas, as you can see from the different resulting maps below.

Design A

Design B

Design C

Design D

The Catlin Gabel PLACE group planned a youth-oriented design workshop as well as a farm scavenger hunt. Only a few youth showed up, so PLACE may use some of the planned activities during the Community Open House on May 15th.

PLACE members preparing for the workshop

The group’s collective experience with community gardens, public parks, the SE 122nd Avenue Pilot Project, community outreach and, oh joy, permitting, resulted in an illuminating discussion. Discussion topics included zoning, public access of the Furey property, parking, traffic, site design and agency support of property development.

A big thanks to our Advisory Committee members for taking time out of their busy schedules to help Zenger Farm grow! We look forward to seeing you again in two weeks.

Technical Advisory Committee members hard at work

Thank you, focus group participants!

On Friday, April 16^th and Wednesday, April 21^st, Ecotone held three focus groups to gather information from key informants on outer southeast Portland needs that could be met by Zenger Farm and the Furey property specifically.

Each group focused on a different nexus of urban agriculture and community needs: food security; environmental education, stewardship and connection to nature; and community and economic development.

We gathered a lot of good information, and are planning on supplementing this input with individual interviews with local leaders who were not able to attend these meetings.  Thanks to everyone who participated!

Here is a handful of interesting information and suggestions shared by participants:

• The most effective non-profit programs addressing food security target specific, discrete groups, such as apartment complexes and schools.  Village Gardens is one example of a very successful program that feeds, educates and builds community at public housing complexes in North Portland.
• One of Zenger’s new adult-focused Healthy Food on a Budget classes was very well liked by at least one participant, suggesting neighborhood interest and a need for more adult food education.
• Parents whose children go through Zenger programs often don’t learn about Zenger, so there is an untapped opportunity to have children educate adults.
• A 2005 Portland Parks & Recreation study found that in general, people who live in multi-family residences want more parks for recreation and play space, whereas people who live in single-family homes tend to desire more natural areas in their neighborhoods.
• Zenger Farm’s greatest strength is educating children and adults about where their food comes from and how to be smart consumers.  Little non-profits can only put a small dent in the greater problem of food insecurity.  Government policy, and possibly market-based incentives, have the ability to make a broader impact.

Part of the Wednesday focus group

Who wouldn't want these two knocking on their door?

On Wednesday, April 7^th and Saturday, April 10^th, Ecotone and PLACE canvassed the neighborhood immediately around the Furey property.

The primary purpose was to collect initial neighborhood input and data through a door-to-door nine-question survey.  The survey included open ended and coded questions about Zenger Farm, the Furey property and gardening.  Working in pairs, Ecotone and PLACE covered about 13 city blocks, which included approximately 150 homes, and administered nearly 60 adult and youth surveys.

The door knocking was also intended to let neighbors know about and get involved with Furey property planning.  Flyers advertising the upcoming Community Design Workshop & Field Trip on Sunday, April 25^th were distributed to every household in the target area.

Thanks to all the neighbors who participated – we hope to see you at the Design Workshop!!!

Ecotone and PLACE members

Stacey interviews Jeff, a Furey property neighbor

Some neighbors live in multi-family homes

Other neighbors live in single-family homes

We met a lot of dogs while door-knocking

We even met a couple of goats!

This is our walking map showing the neighborhood sections each pair of canvassers covered; the Furey property is shown in orange

The Portland Plan will be the city’s new comprehensive plan, a vision for the city as a whole and a roadmap for meeting community needs. Nine major action areas have been identified, of which Human Health, Food and Public Safety is one. Plan development is currently in its second phase and workshops on each of the nine action areas are being held to determine plan targets and how those goals might be reached. The outcome of this planning process will be taken seriously and will shape how Portland grows and changes over the next 30 years.

To learn about and get involved with the Portland Plan’s food policy components, Ecotone member Kate Carone attended the March 16th Portland Plan workshop on Human Health, Food and Public Safety. Approximately 25 people from diverse backgrounds attended and were broken out into groups to discuss and build upon seven preliminary goals relating to health, food and safety.

The goal most relevant to Growing Zenger Farm was, “Make the healthy food choice the easy choice.”

This goal would necessitate efforts to:
1. Improve education about healthy eating.
2. Improve physical access to healthy food through land use planning and transportation improvements.
3. Improve access to affordable food in multiple food retail settings.
4. Provide more opportunities for people to grow food on private and public land.
5. Decrease access to unhealthy foods, particularly in schools and public vending machines.

Ways we could measure success:
1. Portlanders have better access to affordable healthful food than unhealthy food (RFEI), or 90% of Portlanders are within a 1/2-mile walking distance to a full service grocery store and/or farmers market.
2. All Portlanders have the opportunity to grow their own food.

During the workshop, Kate had an opportunity to speak with Steve Cohen, the Food Policy and Programs Director for the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability. He connected Ecotone with a number of resources such as ICLEI and the Multnomah Food Summit, which Ecotone plans to attend. Thanks, Steve!

One of Ecotone’s goals with Growing Zenger Farm is to develop city and county-level policy recommendations to better support urban agriculture efforts in the Portland region. To gain a sense of current local food policy issues and concerns, Ecotone member Kate Carone attended the Food Policy Council’s monthly meeting at City Hall on March 10th.

The greatest benefit of attending this event was meeting some of the individuals who are driving the local food policy discussion. Council members come from a broad range of backgrounds and are a wealth of knowledge that Ecotone plans to tap through focus groups and individual interviews.

Ecotone gleaned two pieces of very relevant information from the meeting. First, the Portland Plan has political clout, and food policies and goals that are included in the plan are more likely to be implemented. Second, the Oregon Solutions Portland Community Gardens project identified the need for a regional food network with a strong online component. The Multnomah Food Initiative is a first step in addressing that need.