Comments on: Bringing Farms to the Heartland — of Suburbia http://la.streetsblog.org/2009/10/30/bringing-farms-to-the-heartland-%e2%80%94-of-suburbia/ Covering Los Angeles's livable streets movement Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:06:00 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: DJB http://la.streetsblog.org/2009/10/30/bringing-farms-to-the-heartland-%e2%80%94-of-suburbia/comment-page-1/#comment-45481 DJB Fri, 30 Oct 2009 17:04:15 +0000 http://la.streetsblog.org/?p=17981#comment-45481 I think it's important not to get carried away with urban agriculture, or at least to be thoughtful about it. Should suburbanites convert unused yard space to organic gardens? Absolutely. I'm less sure that large tracts of land in suburbia should be dedicated to agriculture though. What about other needs, like affordable housing? I'm a fan of mixing land uses, but I'm also a fan of density. A suburb won't be able to grow all of its own food, and large-scale suburban farms will lower the density of suburbia even more, thus increasing VMT, and canceling out some or all of the environmental benefits of locally grown food. However, small-scale operations might be a neat way to build community. I think it’s important not to get carried away with urban agriculture, or at least to be thoughtful about it. Should suburbanites convert unused yard space to organic gardens? Absolutely. I’m less sure that large tracts of land in suburbia should be dedicated to agriculture though. What about other needs, like affordable housing?

I’m a fan of mixing land uses, but I’m also a fan of density. A suburb won’t be able to grow all of its own food, and large-scale suburban farms will lower the density of suburbia even more, thus increasing VMT, and canceling out some or all of the environmental benefits of locally grown food. However, small-scale operations might be a neat way to build community.

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