City Manager promotes “Recovery Gardens”

Part of map of Aurora, Missouri, 1891.

City manager in Aurora, Missouri explains urban agriculture as part of American history

By Tony Stonecypher, City Manager
Aurora Advertiser
Dec 05, 2011

Excerpts:

Aurora, Mo. —
Aurora is working to find a way for agriculture and urban living to be compatible again. When our zoning laws were written and the zones and their assigned uses were developed, it was decided that agricultural activities had no place in the urban area and they were banned entirely. If one looks at the way normal rural farms conduct their business, it is clear why this assumption was made. Consolidated feedlots and large machinery have no place in a congested city street, but is that really all that agriculture means?

Thomas Jefferson had a different idea when he looked to America’s future. He saw a large class of yeoman farmers who were self reliant and industrious. This attitude was to be the backbone of a nation, and, while the vision of a country of farmers has not endured the self-reliance and independent nature has. This attitude has served us well throughout our history and the best example for our current discussion has to be the Victory Gardens of the World War I and II eras. They were gardens established in private yards and public parks in cities all across this land.

They were planted to ease the pressure on the food supply during the wars, but they were also a morale booster. It gave people an opportunity to contribute to the cause and reap the rewards of their labor at the same time. We as a people need to be a contributing part of society, and one of the basic parts of our society is to provide food. What better way to give than to give food? What better way to feel productive than to produce life-giving food?

Read the complete article here.