City councilors vote to explore relocation options
The leader of Equal Ground Community Gardens says group members are disappointed by city council’s debate about allowing a greenhouse at its Earl Haig garden location.
“We are extremely disappointed and disheartened,” Caitlin Schneider said after a recent council meeting. “We have partnered with the city since 2015 and already had this project at Earl Haig approved. We were, quite frankly, shocked to hear that the approval to build the greenhouse on Earl Haig might be overturned.”
At a city operations committee meeting earlier this month, the volunteer group asked councilors to waive half of the planning and building permit fees – about $3,500 – to put up a greenhouse at 101 Market St. S., the site of its largest community garden.
Equal Ground has been planting community gardens around the city since 2009 and currently supports 33 sites.
The group wants to install a greenhouse 25 feet wide, 26 feet long and about 12.5 feet high at the Earl Haig garden site. They received a Trillium grant of about $18,000 for the greenhouse, which would allow them to extend their growing season and create what they call a community hub.
The Earl Haig community garden yielded about 1,500 pounds of produce in 2021, with much of it going to the Brantford food bank.
At a meeting on Dec. 20, city council voted 6-5 to refer the matter back to city staff so they could recommend alternative locations for the greenhouse.
“What we want to do is ensure the good work of the community and volunteers lands on a forever site,” said Coun. Dan McCreary. “Somebody’s going to eventually be building on that (Earl Haig) site and we will have the same kind of angst we had about Arrowdale.”
The city’s decision to sell the former Arrowdale municipal golf course drew criticism from some city residents who said there was insufficient public consultation.
Schneider said moving the greenhouse from the proposed Earl Haig site would have a “significant negative impact on the entire Equal Ground organization.”
“We have already spent and committed thousands of dollars of the grant money on the approved project at the existing site.”
Schneider said the city has suggested nearby Rivergreen Park as a possible alternative site for the greenhouse. She said that location isn’t feasible because of the large number of mature trees, no water source and a lack of parking.
“Equal Ground Community Garden did have a community garden there previously,” said Schneider. “It was closed several years ago as it was an unsuccessful site.”
County John Sless, who voted in favor of getting more information from city staff, said it had been insinuated that those not supporting the Earl Haig location for the greenhouse are opposed to community gardens.
“A vote to not necessarily put it there but to get further information as to where it possibility could be is not voting down the good work these folks are doing,” he said. “This is about finding the proper location.”