Mar

10

If the most fertile land in the country produces cars and chemicals, what do we eat?

Filed Under Cities, Food System, Land Use, Zoning | Leave a Comment

Out of India, where government investment can result in the conversion of agricultural land into office parks, comes a fundamental question relevant to the global smart-growth movement:

If the most fertile land in the country produces cars and chemicals, what do we eat?

via Don’t just develop land, develop future – India – DNA.

Jun

3

Open Letter to Seattle City Council

Filed Under Food System, walking, Zoning | 3 Comments

Dear Seattle City Councilmembers,

Great City firmly believes that active, pedestrian-friendly streets are essential to a safe and vital city. To that end, we are excited about the opportunities mobile food vending can bring to Seattle.

We see a multitude of benefits offered by mobile food vending, including:

Enhanced street life: Mobile food vending offers opportunities for people to use streets and sidewalks as public space, not merely as transportation corridors. Activity is created by the draw of economical and nutritious food and the potential for human exchange and interaction. In addition, mobile street vending has the possibility to extend the “normal” hours and season of street use, thereby increasing the sense of safety and comfort of all street users.

Economic opportunities: The economic opportunities provided by mobile food vending are two-fold – not only do they offer a relatively inexpensive entrée to business, particularly for immigrants, but the foot traffic they can bring to a street can increase the economic vitality of the areas and bring opportunity and value to all levels to commerce.

We support the proposed modifications to the existing ordinance which would diversify the types of food that can be sold, expand the permissible locations for food vending, facilitate a streamlined street use permitting process, improve public noticing requirements, and eliminate the 200’ park setback. Aside from theses administrative aspects/issues, we encourage adequate consideration to the logistical issues that will affect the day-to-day operation and functionality of the carts, especially where they are to be placed in more constricted public rights-of-way.

We strongly encourage your support of the proposed ordinance allowing mobile food vending in Seattle, and we look forward to seeing our streets grow more activated and dynamic.

Sincerely,

Joshua Curtis

Executive Director, Great City

Jan

8

New Website Focuses on Puget Sound Food System

Filed Under Food System | 1 Comment

Note: This just came in via Diana Vergis Vinh (one of Great City’s new board members) who recently co-founded Urban Farm Hub, a website devoted to providing stories, news, research and resources on our local food system. Here’s the press release:

girlSunGrass

Urban Farm Hub – Get Down and Dirty

www.urbanfarmhub.org

One day while drinking tea Diana Vergis Vinh and Ashley DeForest started dreaming about how great it would be to create a resource that brought together their love of farming, food and community. Urban Farm Hub was born.

Diana grew up visiting family farms in Iowa and Montana and now farms an urban yard, complete with goats and chickens. When she’s not busy collecting eggs, Diana serves as a public health nurse for Public Health Seattle & King County’s Healthy Eating and Active Living Program. Ashley grew up in dairy country New York living large with the cows and now works on policy issues and community engagement through web design.

Their vision is to combine their skills and passions to bring a needed resource to the Puget Sound region. From national food policy news to local urban farming lore, Urban Farm Hub brings it all together in one place.