This Atlanta suburb could be the first to adopt a City Agriculture Plan

Atlanta is hoping to become one of the first cities in the US to implement a city agriculture plan. Read on to learn more.

FWA recently received a three-year $250,000 grant from the USDA to pilot its city agriculture plan in East Point with help from the Atlanta Regional Commission (ARC). Called the Regional Food System Partnerships grant, this new program joins the Farmers Market and Local Food Promotion grant programs.

When FWA started its journey, it put out a call out to several cities to see which ones might be interested in prioritizing agriculture in their city plans. East Point, which has a population of over 35,000, is located southwest of Atlanta and minutes away from Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.

“Ultimately, we selected East Point due to a few factors: their high level of community engagement, dedicated city staff who have helped us to shepherd the process through municipal channels, and a diverse number of food and agriculture organizations based in East Point who we knew could connect and leverage plan resources,” Sarah Benedict Brown, project manager at Food Well Alliance (FWA) told Sacred Cow.

Over 100 residents of the East Point community turned up at the food forum to discuss the city agriculture plan, she adds. The city is also home to the headquarters for CompostNow, which offers composting programs for homes and workplaces, and Common Market SE, a mission-driven distributor of sustainable and local foods. It’s also home to several urban farms and community gardens, and a thriving farmers market.

“It would have been difficult to plan without the knowledge that we would have key community partners to advise us and carry out implementation projects. East Point is also just a very proud and enthusiastic city. They have a saying, ‘there’s no point like East Point,’ and it’s true! They’re an incredibly supportive and active community.” 

The idea for a city agriculture plan was born in 2019 when FWA and ARC started collaborating to engage local governments in city urban planning. The community engagement phase included a comprehensive process that focused on including community strengths and local grower priorities. 

Following this phase, ARC completed a six-month planning process guided by a Steering Committee composed of a diverse set of community-selected and city-appointed delegates who represent a variety of entities from the local food system and City government.

In May 2020, a draft city agriculture plan was presented to various stakeholders. East Point City Council has been involved in the planning process and will give final approval to the plan.

For now, zoning ordinances prevent livestock from being included in the plan but FWA and Brown are one step ahead.

“We are fortunate that the release of the plan coincides with an upcoming zoning ordinance review by the city. We have allocated funds under the USDA grant towards a zoning specialist familiar with urban agriculture who can provide suggestions for ordinance updates to create a more supportive ecosystem for local food stakeholders in East Point. This will include looking at definitions and regulations regarding livestock and poultry in the city.” 

Through the pilot project in East Point, FWA is hoping to expand its work into 54 cities throughout Georgia. Brown has already given thought to what future city agriculture plans may look like and it has little to do with a one-size-fits-all approach.

“The most important factor that will contribute to the success of the plan is that it is specifically tailored to each city’s unique needs. In East Point, we created the plan around community and city priorities to directly address East Point-specific goals and challenges. This is what we’ll carry over to future CAP cities, a commitment to learning from their communities, and presenting realistic solutions and strategies for them.”