The money came out of the West Dayton Development Fund, part of the city’s commission discretionary fund.
The Greater Edgemont Community Coalition has been working for over five years to secure funding to redevelop its solar garden. The coalition additionally supports initiatives on blight and trash removal and community engagement.
The group intends to use the funds to create a more financially sustainable garden center, according to Omope Carter-Daboiku, the farm manager at the Edgemont Solar Garden.
ICYMI: The City Commission approved an $85K grant from the West Dayton Development Fund for the Edgemont Community Coalition for a solar garden.https://t.co/wdsdj5xYFD
— City of Dayton, Ohio (@cityofdayton) March 4, 2022
At the Commission meeting, Steve Ross, a board member at the coalition, said the organization plans to expand into vacant lots to grow more affordable, fresh produce.
“When you look at our community, we can't necessarily afford that all the time,” Ross said. “There has to be a service that provides that healthy organic food free, or at a very affordable price like you would your McDonald's hamburger.”
For decades, the solar garden has hosted numerous programs for the community. It’s currently hosting Central States University’s incubator farm — a program that prepares young farmers how to start and operate their own farming businesses.
It also serves as a garden for nearby residents. But a fire in 2016 damaged its community center and the existing greenhouse also needs a new heating system.
Along with the lack of access to healthy, affordable foods, Ross said it was necessary for the coalition to change its mission and expand deeper into the community.
“Eating healthy and living healthy in this country costs money,” Ross said. “We want to be that alternative for healthy eating versus going through the drive thru and just picking up a burger.”
The continued success of the solar garden is critical to the revitalization and stabilization of the Edgemont neighborhood, said Regina Blackshear, the Clerk of Commission for the city of Dayton.
Alejandro Figueroa is a corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists into local newsrooms.
