This Changes Everything
Saturday, July 11th, 2020Dear Larry
Your visit to City Farm SLO yesterday and commitment of funds to enable us to “Think Big” marks a momentous occasion. This changes everything.
Along with that, your bringing along Jerry to help with farm issues and our discussions of specific strategies signals more support than the essential contribution of real money.
…
Your offer has already released a cascade of pent-up dreams and impending tasks. It allows for the kind of long-term planning we’ve needed for years that’s been hampered by our limited and unpredictable finances.
On the other hand, for me it highlights a need for caution and deliberation. We now face a myriad of decisions that need to balance need, opportunity and constraint. Before our Board meeting on Tuesday, I will propose a process to formulate goals, means, procedures, schedules and budgets that includes City Farm’s diverse stakeholders.
Our discussions yesterday already produced a first pass at such a plan:
· Proceed immediately with development of entry area to build a cooler and wash/packing station for use of all tenants
· Begin beautification program to include elimination of all eyesores and add designed signage, fence upgrades, and landscaping improvements and maintenance.
· Begin engagement with other urban educational farms, (e.g. Coastal Roots Farm, https://www.farmbasededucation.org/members, https://fairviewgardens.org/, https://soilborn.org/
· Step up efforts to engage the school district in long term predictable scheduling and funding of our educational programs . I mentioned that I expect Jen (https://www.jenerator.me/ and httpss://steamaheadcamp.com) to join in that effort.
Since our meeting at the farm, one model has already emerged: the back and forth among several players about the infrastructure and design of the well/pump area. I hope that within the week we can to move on that so as to have tangible evidence of where we are going in place by the Fall, but it’s also important to keep entertaining alternatives.
I believe “thinking big” at City Farm warrants a name that gives notice that we are embarking on a program to more fully realize the potential of the land entrusted to us, for example, “Harvest 2022” or “City Farm Growth Initiative.” I’m not satisfied with either of those and hope you and the Board will come up with others.
In partnership,
Steven