Growing Home is committed to bring fresh food to Chicago's South Side.

Englewood, where our Wood Street Urban Farm is located, was once a flourishing Chicago neighborhood. It has suffered from decades of neglect and the flight of about 50% of its population since the early 1960’s. This dismal cycle of decline in Englewood can be seen in the vacant buildings and sparse population that have allowed drug trafficking and other criminal activity to grow. As gangs protected their territories, violence increased and youth became at risk of either gang assaults or gang recruitment. Domestic vio¬lence, substance abuse and high unemployment levels all contribute to a crime rate near the top among Chicago police districts. As a result of these difficult circumstances, most major food vendors have abandoned Englewood, and much of the south side of Chicago. This area has been described as a “food desert” because of the lack of access to food in general, and particularly to fresh, healthy food.

In response to these problems, the LISC/New Communities Program and Teamwork Englewood sponsored a community planning process that culminated in a Quality of Life Plan. One of the goals of the plan is to “develop an urban agriculture district to provide business, job training and employment opportunities while improving the availability of fresh produce,” which combines strategies for economic development and plans to improve healthy living into an initiative that focuses on access to and production of healthy food.

Growing Home was invited early on in the planning process to be a part of Englewood’s proposed urban agriculture district because our goal of developing community-based urban farms fits in well with Englewood’s desire to develop this urban agriculture district. Together, we were able to find land and locate initial funding for the development of our Wood St. Urban Farm. The construction of this new farm in 2007 and 2008 is turning the goals envisioned in the Quality of Life Plan for Englewood into a reality.

Growing Home staff members Harry Rhodes and Orrin Williams participated in a working group from March to June 2008, which culminated in the Quality-of-Life “Strategy #5 Implementation Work Plan: Food, Fitness & Health for Englewood” which promotes “healthy lifestyles that include physical fitness, good nutrition, and better use of healthcare resources.” This document is the working plan for linking Growing Home’s Wood Street Urban Farm with the greater goal of community and economic development in Englewood. Additional ideas range from more urban farms to restaurants to developing a food venture center. Growing Home staff remains at the center of these planning efforts.
Growing Home's Wood Street Urban Farm, as well as well as the future farms we have planned, will be an important part of Englewood's revitalization, as they create jobs, provide nutritious produce, and drive "green economies" throughout the neighborhood.

Already, Teamwork Englewood, in cooperation with a group of students from local Lindblom High School led by Growing Home staff member Orrin Williams, created the Englewood Farmer's Market, which began in June 2008.