Idea for South Hill community garden on city property sprouting nicely

A group of people is working to open a new community garden next to the Southside Senior and Community Center on land owned by the city of Spokane.

Dennis Anderson, manager of a community garden at East 33rd Avenue and South Lamont Street, is leading the effort.

“I thought it was a good idea, so I started this whole mess,” he said.

Anderson recently retired from his jobs as a psychology professor at Eastern Washington University and as a mental health counselor, so he began playing pinochle at the center. He noticed the large water tanks on property just west and south of the center, which sits on the edge of Thornton Murphy Park.

“There was this huge swath of land over there,” he said. “This just seemed like an opportunity. When I approached the city about it, they were all for it. I was kind of surprised that they were as open to it as they are.”

Anderson said he thinks the city was receptive because the garden he manages on 33rd Avenue is also on land owned by the city.

“It’s been a good relationship with them,” he said.

Anderson, who is training to become a Master Gardener, is leading a group of neighborhood residents and Master Gardeners trying to put the garden together. They’ve arranged to hire students from Washington State University’s Landscape Architecture Club to design the garden for a small donation.

The city will do the necessary site preparation, including removing the sod, Anderson said. From there, what the group can do depends on how much money it can raise between now and next spring.

“I would envision having an educational center as part of the garden,” Anderson said.

That could be as simple as a kiosk or something more like a picnic shelter where small groups could gather for classes. Anderson said he’d also like a tool shed, compost bins and a greenhouse to go along with the raised beds that will be available to local residents to rent for $25 per growing season.

“It would be nice to have some of the beds wheelchair accessible,” he said.

The city has said it will provide the water by installing hose hookups every 50 feet throughout the garden, Anderson said.

“It would be every gardener’s responsibility to water,” he said.

If the garden on 33rd Avenue is any indication, the gardeners would use less water than the city uses to irrigate the grass, Anderson said.

“It’s a win/win for everyone,” he said.

The open, grassy area that would become the garden is inside a 10-foot fence. Anderson said the city would require the group to put up a 6-foot fence surrounding the garden so people would not have access to the water storage tanks.

Anderson said there’s plenty of room for the added features he wants like the greenhouse.

“Not all of it would be suitable for gardening because of the shade,” he said of the site.

The fundraising goal for startup costs is $20,000, but Anderson said that’s a shot in the dark. The total price tag will depend on the cost of fencing, materials to make the raised beds and the garden soil needed to fill the beds. After that, the minimal fees charged to the gardeners will be enough to maintain it.

“Once things are built, then it’s self-sufficient,” he said.

The neighborhood around Thornton Murphy Park includes a retirement facility and low-income apartments. Anderson said he hopes the garden will attract those residents and others. He has a bed in the garden he manages on 33rd Avenue because his yard is too shaded to grow anything.

“It does give you some ability to interact with the people in the neighborhood,” he said.

He said he always grows tomatoes, and this year also planted basil, onions, potatoes, peas and peppers.

“Everything was good this year,” he said.

Southside center board president Shelagh Camak has been attending the garden organizational meetings. The center has agreed to be the fiscal agent for the project and accept the donations needed to build it.

“We’re a 501(c)3, so we’re an excellent opportunity,” Camak said. “It’s just perfect for a community center to have a community garden. There are a lot of people who don’t have land to grow their own veggies.”

So far there seems to be quite a bit of interest in the project, Camak said. “I really do believe it’s been well-received within the center community,” she said.