Derelict lot may be a linchpin for city farming effort in St. Louis

“There’s a lot of interest out there,” he said. “We’re very open to selling all the lots we have for useful purposes.” Otis Williams, deputy executive director with the St. Louis Development Corp.

By Georgina Gustin
St Louis Today
Nov 4, 2011

Excerpts:

The couple, both 35, have secured city approval to buy a derelict one-third-acre lot at 4539 Delmar Boulevard and start farming it next year. They plan to take on trainees who will eventually do the same thing on other properties throughout the city, transforming vacant eyesores while providing jobs and healthful produce in the process.

Initially, the couple considered buying a second plot somewhere in the countryside. But the Villarreals stumbled onto the St. Louis Land Reutilization Authority’s list of properties after a friend suggested urban lots. The authority manages tax delinquent properties throughout the city, and sells them to prospective buyers who go through an approval process. The couple found their lot on Delmar and were approved to buy it earlier this year after convincing the city they had a solid plan.

A study conducted by the Show-Me Institute this year found that the city had a track record of rejecting buyers for LRA lands. But that appears to be changing, according to the institute, and the city seems more inclined to sell land to prospective farmers.

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