Hapeville Receives $10,000 Grant to Support City Agriculture

Residents in Hapeville gathered in 2019 to discuss city agriculture at Arches Brewing. (Photo: Tabia Lisenbee-Parker/Food Well Alliance)

In October, 2018, Food Well Alliance launched an initiative to create City Agriculture Plans for every city in Fulton, DeKalb, Gwinnett, Cobb, and Clayton through a partnership with Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC). Seven cities applied, including the City of Hapeville, and we held local Food Forums to find out what was happening on the ground in each city during spring of 2019. After six months of forums, site visits, and internal deliberation, the City of East Point was chosen to pilot City Agriculture Planning with ARC.

With East Point well underway in their planning, Food Well Alliance wanted to support the incredible work happening in the other cities that applied. To catalyze their work in urban agriculture, Food Well Alliance awarded a $10,000 Opportunity Grant to the City of Hapeville to dedicate a space within the Tom E. Morris Sports Complex for local food advocates to join together and grow food for the community.

The space will host a year-round edible garden with community beds, fruit-bearing trees and bushes open to community harvest, as well as  farm stands for locally grown produce. The site will be maintained through a collaborative public-private partnership with the Azalea Park and Northwoods Neighborhood Associations to ensure it’s long-term viability. Funds from Food Well Alliance will provide for infrastructure installation and planting at the garden. 

We appreciate the support and dedication for city agriculture from the City of Hapeville. Thanks to their incredible team, vision, and residents who are excited about the work, Hapeville is poised to be a leader in local agriculture. To learn more about the Tom E. Morris Sports Complex, visit https://www.hapeville.org/97/Parks-and-Facilities