BROWN COUNTY UW-EXTENSION COMMUNITY GARDENS · “The 2017 Brown County UW-Extension Community...

Drew J. Scheler, PhD Margaret Franchino Bethany M. Thier

PROGRAM REPORT

PREPARED BY ST. NORBERT COLLEGE AND BROWN COUNTY UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN - EXTENSION

2017BROWN COUNT Y UW-EXTENS ION COMMUNIT Y GARDENS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The greater Green Bay community loves its gardens. Just as gardeners lovingly tend to their crops, so too did countless individuals across the community nurture this project to ensure that it flourished. This report would not be possible without the labor, contributions, support, and feedback of these individuals. Most of them dedicated their time and energy to this project on a volunteer basis. Most were motivated to do so because they believe in community gardening, and wanted to foster a sophisticated, data-driven awareness of our program’s important role in the community. The authors want to acknowledge everyone who contributed.

Authors: Drew J. Scheler, PhD, Director of Writing Across the Curriculum, St. Norbert College Margaret Franchino, Community Garden Coordinator, Brown County UW-Extension Bethany Thier, Consultant, The Connected Community: Individual, Organization, Nonprofit Consulting Group

Advisors, Reviewers, and Other Support: Anindo Choudhury PhD, Director of The Collaborative: Center for Undergraduate Research, St. Norbert College Judy Knudsen, Director, Brown County UW-Extension Jamie Lynch, PhD, Director of the Strategic Research Institute, St. Norbert College Wendy Scattergood, PhD, Assistant Professor of Political Science, St. Norbert College Marc Schaeffer, PhD, Director of the Center for Business and Economic Analysis, St. Norbert College

Contributors: Karen Early, R.D.N, Food WIse Nutrition Coordinator, Brown County UW-Extension Cathy Huntowski, Food WIse Nutrition Educator, Brown County UW-Extension Abdoulkarim Ismail, Community Volunteer and Community Gardener Luis Navarro-Ayala, PhD, Assistant Professor of Modern Languages and Literatures, St. Norbert College Marcie Paul, PhD, Assistant Professor of Modern Languages and Literatures, St. Norbert College Hanna Reinke, Student Research Collaborator, St. Norbert College Wa Yia Thao, Board Member, Wisconsin United Coalition of Mutual Assistance Associations Cheryl Williams, Community Volunteer

II Brown County UW-Extension Community Gardens 2017 Program Report

REVIEWS “It is evident, as indicated in this report, that the Brown County UW-Extension Community Gardens (BCCG) program provides a significant social and economic value to our region. The BCCG currently manages 10 gardens in the area servicing 211 individuals, across a variety of races and income levels, to yield nearly $300,000 of produce in the past year. The complex ecosystem and history of this entity are clearly outlined in this analysis along with strong quantitative evidence of the program outcomes. For anyone looking to gain an understanding of the BCCG or how they work to enact social change in our region, this program report serves as the definite resource.” -Marc Schaeffer, Director of the Center for Business and Economic Analysis, St. Norbert College

“The 2017 Brown County UW-Extension Community Gardens (BCCG) Program Report provides a demographic and analytic profile of community gardening in the Greater Green Bay area. The report highlights a number of ways a community gardening program can have an impact. From a purely demographic point of view, the BCCG program report shows evidence of a program that elevates diverse voices and experiences. The BCCG is embedded in a community that is majority white, but BCCG gardeners are primarily non-white and a majority use a non-English language to communicate. Second, compared to 2015, perceptual data indicates that the BCCG has had an increasingly positive impact on family financial security, health behaviors, and food choices. Finally, the report shows that gardens can serve as an organizational hub that aligns diverse citizens, local governments, and private funders interested in improving the local community.” -Jamie Lynch, Director of the Strategic Research Institute, St. Norbert College

III Brown County UW-Extension Community Gardens 2017 Program Report

Table Of ContentsStatement from the Authors Mission Statement and Program Description 2017 Community Gardens 2017 Gardener Demographics 2017 Gardeners by Address Do Gardeners Rent Plots in their Neighborhoods? How Do Gardeners Communicate? BCCG in the Community 2017 Programs and Projects 2017 Programs and Partners Volunteerism and Community Outreach Program History: 2012-2017 Program History: 2002-2011 Program History: 1994-2001 2017 Budget and Expenses Program Reach by Income and Household Program Data by Income and Household Program Reach for Very Low Income Households 2017 Economic Impacts: Overview 2017 Economic Impacts: City vs. County Community Perspectives: Economic Relief Community Perspectives: Health Benefits Survey Responses: Community Health Benefits Community Perspectives: City Beautification Statement from the Hmong Community Statement from Latinx Gardeners at Imperial Pride Statement from Somali Gardeners at Western Avenue Program Goals Appendix A: Garden Information Appendix B: Demographic Information Appendix C: Program Information Appendix D: Volunteer Hours Appendix E: Community Development Block Grant Data - 2016 & 2017 Appendix F: Calculating Produce Value Appendix G: Economic Impact Data by Garden Appendix H: Gardener Survey Responses - 2015 & 2016

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27

28-29 30-31 32-33 34-36 37-38

39 40 41

42-43

IV Brown County UW-Extension Community Gardens 2017 Program Report

Figures

V Brown County UW-Extension Community Gardens 2017 Program Report

Figure 1 Garden Map Figure 2 Chart: Gardener Demographic- Race Figure 3 Chart: Gardener Demographic- Income Figure 4 Table: Gardeners by Address Figure 5 Chart: Gardeners by Address Figure 6 Infographic: Gardeners by Neighborhood Figure 7 Chart: Gardener Demographic- Internet Usage Figure 8 Chart: Gardener Demographic- Language Preference Figure 9 Infographic: Ecology of Relationships Figure 10 Infographic: Programs and Projects Figure 11 Infographic: Programs and Partners Figure 12 Chart: Volunteer Data- Hours Figure 13 Table: Volunteerism and Community Outreach Figures 14-16 Program History Figure 17 Table: Budget Figure 18 Infographic: 2017 Program Reach- Individuals Figure 19 Table: Economic Data- Households Figure 20 Chart: Economic Data- Households Figure 21 Table: Economic Data- Individuals Figure 22 Chart: Economic Data- Individuals Figure 23 Chart: Program Reach for Very Low Income Households Figure 24 Table: Program Reach for Very Low Income Households Figure 25 Table: Economic Impacts- Overview Figure 26 Table: Economic Impacts- by Garden Figure 27 Chart: Economic Relief- Provider Figure 28 Chart: Economic Relief- Financial Figure 29 Chart: Survey Responses- Overview Figure 30 Chart: Survey Responses- Physically Active Figure 31 Chart: Survey Responses- Fruits and Vegetables Figure 32 Chart: Survey Responses Packaged Food Figure 33 Chart: Survey Responses- Stress Figure 34 Table: Survey Responses- Neighborhood Involvement Figure 35 Table: Survey Responses- Family Involvement Figure 36 Table: Garden Information Figure 37 Table: Demographic Information Figure 38 Table: Program Information Figure 39 Table: Volunteer Hours Figure 40 Table: Community Development Block Grant- Economic Data Figure 41 Table: Calculating Produce Value Figure 42 Table: Economic Impact by Garden Figure 43 Table: Survey Data- 2015 Figure 44 Table: Survey Data- 2016

3 4 4 5 5 6 7 7 8 9

10 11 11

12-14 15 16 17 17 17 17 18 18 19 20 21 21 22 23 23 23 23 23 23

30-31 32-33 34-36 37-38

39 40 41 42 43

1 Brown County UW-Extension Community Gardens 2017 Program Report

A W O R D FROM THEAUTHORS

“BCCG’s success is linked to its overall embeddedness in

community—to our investment in a range

of programs and partnerships across

the county.”

The present report intends to increase awareness of the Brown County UW-Extension Community Gardens Program (BCCG), and to provide data about its role in promoting the livelihood of the greater Green Bay community. Such a project was occasioned by a unique political circumstance. In recent years, BCCG’s program coordinator position has been partly funded by Brown County’s tax levy, and partly funded by the City of Green Bay’s Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) dollars. While this City-County partnership has allowed our program to thrive after its near-collapse in 2012, the CDBG funds were only ever a short-term solution. In July 2017, our program was informed that it was no longer eligible for CDBG money in 2018. It is our understanding that both the City Council of Green Bay and the Brown County Board of Supervisors are currently planning next year’s budgets—and, in this venue, deliberating about how to ensure the continuance of BCCG’s services to the community.

This report hopes to inform those deliberations by providing data on BCCG’s administration, services, and community impacts. These data were gathered and analyzed using a participatory and pragmatic research methodology known as action research.* This methodology puts academic expertise in conversation with program leadership and community members to collaborate in research that informs meaningful change. Many people across the community therefore helped prepare this report. Among its main authors was BCCG’s coordinator, Margaret Franchino, who gathered data on the program under the supervision of the UW-Extension’s Institutional Review Board. Drew Scheler, Director of Writing Across the Curriculum at St. Norbert College, helped arranged those data for presentation. He also he engaged volunteers from across the community to develop portions of this document using a collaborative interviewing method within a community literacy framework.** Among those volunteers was Bethany Thier—a nonprofit consultant, artist, and BCCG community gardener—who provided significant pro bono labor that guided the direction and dissemination of this work.

As a result, this report presents data that were gathered and analyzed with academic integrity. We believe that these data also illustrate how deeply BCCG is embedded in, and valued by, the local community. In this report, we demonstrate that our program provides a particularly important service to our area’s low-to-moderate income families, largely because it empowers residents to take control of their health and their economic stability. Historically speaking, this has been especially true for our Hmong community, though BCCG has always made a point to reach out to the full range of local residents. Such outreach, in turn, helps characterize precisely why our gardens have been so impactful. As this report suggests, BCCG’s success is linked to its overall embeddedness in community—to our investment in a range of programs and partnerships across the county. We hope that this embeddedness persists in spite of any funding or administrative challenges, so that our program can continue to help our community grow.

Sincerely yours,

Drew J. Scheler Margaret Franchino Bethany Thier

*For an introduction to action research, see Davydd J. Greenwood and Morten Levin, Introduction to Action Research: Social Research for Social Change, 2nd edition (Thousand Oaks: Sage, 2007) and Randy Stoecker, Research Methods for Community Change: A Project-Based Approach, 2nd edition (Los Angeles: Sage, 2013).** For an introduction to the collaborative interviewing and focus group research informing this work, see Kathryn Roulston, Reflective Interviewing: A Guide to Theory and Practice (Los Angeles: Sage, 2010), 59-68. For an introduction to community literacy, see Elenore Long, Community Literacy and the Rhetorics of Local Publics (West Lafayette: Parlor Press, 2008).

Developed in 1996 by UW-Extension FoodWise Program (formerly WNEP) as part of an overall initiative to increase food security in Brown County, the program has expanded to ten community gardens on over four acres with more than 300 plots and 200 gardeners. The gardens are supported by Brown County, Brown County UW-Extension, the City of Green Bay, donors, community partners, and local volunteers.

The Brown County UW-Extension Community Gardens Program (BCCG) provides garden space and logistical assistance to Brown County residents to facilitate their access to affordable, nutritious and culturally appropriate food.

MISSIONThe Brown County UW-Extension Community Gardens Program empowers all county residents to grow healthy food by providing resources and organizational capacity.

Mission Statement and Program Description


2017 Community Gardens*

We Serve Gardeners Across Brown County

BCCG offers gardens both inside and outside of Green Bay’s city limits in order to provide space for the community to grow its own food. We have deliberately placed some gardens within the City to address the needs of local neighborhoods. Other gardens operate outside of Green Bay in order to provide additional space for those who desire to produce more food. While most of our gardens provide plots that are open for the general public to rent, BCCG also coordinates specific gardens for strategic purposes within the community. This year, for example, we created the Veterans’ Garden in partnership with the Green Bay Vet Center and Green Bay Packers Give Back. That garden is designed to help members of our veteran community access the mental health benefits associated with gardening.

1.) Four Seasons Garden

2.) 5th St. Garden

3.) 8th St. Garden

4.) Maple and Augusta Garden

5.) Church Rd. Garden

6.) Community Church Garden

7.) UW-Extension Garden

8.) Olde North Garden

9.) Imperial Pride Garden

10.) Western Ave. Garden

11.) Veterans’ Garden

*For details on each garden, see Appendix A.


2017 Gardener Demographics*BCCG supports a diverse range of people across Brown County*

We have been especially successful in bringing together people of different cultures, races, and national origins. BCCG, in fact, was originally developed in conjunction with a range of UW-Extension programs designed to support and empower the Hmong community. As a result, we provide an ongoing service to our local Hmong gardeners and market producers. Over its decades-long history, furthermore, BCCG has deliberately reached out to other local communities. In the past, specific gardens have been implemented as a result of outreach to the African American, Latinx, and elderly communities. More recently, we also connected with the Somali community—an effort that resulted in the development of the Western Ave. Garden. For many, gardening is a way to preserve culture and customs. By participating in community gardens, our gardeners’ communities both maintain their traditions and share them with others.

Gardeners’ Race

2%

6%

25%

31%

36%

WhiteNo Data Available AsianHispanicBlack, African AmericanOther

Gardeners’ Income

7%

26%

18%

50%

LowLow-to-ModerateModerate-to-HighNo Data Available

BCCG supports people at a range of income levels

The majority (68%) of our gardeners are classified as “Low-to-Moderate Income” (LMI). To calculate this, we ask gardeners to provide information about their income and their family size, organized according to categories dictated by the City of Green Bay Community Development Block Grant (CDBG). Using this information, we know that our LMI gardeners live in homes that make less than 80% of the area’s median annual income. Indeed, half of our gardeners are classified as “low income,” meaning that their household make less than 50% of the area’s median income. Within that category, a full 67 of our gardeners’ households are classified as “very low income,” meaning that their families make less than 30% of the area’s median annual income.

*Information based on 2017 gardener registration data. For full demographic data, see Appendix B.


Location of Gardener’s Residence: Total Percentage of Gardeners by Home Address:

City 72.8%

County 27.2%

BCCG Gardeners by Address

Garden

Gardeners Living

in Green Bay

Gardeners Living Outside

Green Bay

Number of Gardeners by

Garden

Percentage of Total

Gardeners8th St. Garden 9 2 11 5.3%UW-Extension Garden 6 5 11 5.3%Four Seasons Garden 6 7 13 6.3%Olde North Garden 12 2 14 6.8%5th St. Garden 15 1 16 7.8%Imperial Pride Garden 14 5 19 9.2%Maple and Augusta Garden 21 1 22 10.7%Church Rd. Garden 21 4 25 12.1%Western Ave. Garden 30 2 32 15.5%Community Church Garden 16 27 43 20.9%Total Gardeners by Address 150 56 206*

Denotes gardens located outside of the city.

Num

ber o

f Gar

dene

rs

28

55

83

110

Gardens Inside the City Gardens Outside the City

Gardeners with a city addressGardeners with a county address

*Information based on 2017 gardener registration data. We do not have these data for 5 gardeners. For full demographic data, see Appendix B.


Some gardens in Green Bay support several people living outside the city …45% of gardeners at the UW-Extension Garden live outside of Green Bay.26% of gardeners at the Imperial Pride Garden live outside of Green Bay.

CITY GARDENS

107 GARDENERS WITH A CITY ADDRESS

18 GARDENERS WITH A COUNTY ADDRESS

Do Gardeners Rent Plots in Their Neighborhoods?*

All gardens outside of Green Bay support people living inside the city…84% of gardeners at the Church Rd. Garden live in Green Bay.46% of gardeners at the Four Season Garden live in Green Bay.37% of gardeners at the Community Church Garden live in Green Bay.

COUNTY GARDENS

43 GARDENERS WITH A CITY ADDRESS

38 GARDENERS WITH A COUNTY ADDRESS

Yes and no. 72.8% of our total gardeners live in Green Bay, and about two-thirds of them rent a plot within city limits. This is because some of our gardens—Imperial Pride and Western Ave., for example—are meant to serve specific communities in specific neighborhoods within the city. However, about a third of our gardeners who live in Green Bay rent a plot outside of the city. This means that at least 43 city residents travel outside of their immediate neighborhood to garden. This is because the gardens outside of the city can provide more square footage per plot, making them appealing for gardeners who want (or need) more produce in the growing season. The reverse is also true, though on a limited scale. Our gardens in of Green Bay support 18 gardeners living in a municipality other than Green Bay (about 9% of the program’s total gardeners).*

*Information based on 2017 gardener registration data. We do not have these data for 5 gardeners.For full demographic data, see Appendix B. On the distinction between city and county gardens, see Appendix A.


How Do Gardeners Communicate?*Gardeners’ Internet Usage

7%

17%

6%

16%

55%

DailyWeeklyMonthly/RarelyNeverNo Data Available Gardeners’ Language

Preference

7%6%5%

9%

32%

41%

EnglishHmongSpanishMultilingualOtherNo Data Available

BCCG faces unique communication challenges It is not a problem to communicate quickly and effectively with most of our gardeners. However, we face three unique issues in reaching out to some gardeners. First, not all of our gardeners are regular internet users, meaning that email or social media communications will not reach the entire BCCG community. More importantly, not all of our gardeners speak English as their primary language. Indeed, our gardeners speak a number of non-English languages, including Hmong, Spanish, Somali, and even less common languages like Russian, Oromo, and Romanian. Finally, a portion of participating gardeners are not literate and cannot be reached by any written communication, regardless of language. These problems present noteworthy challenges for our most important communications, especially those surrounding gardener registration, updates, announcements, garden troubleshooting, and volunteer solicitation.

BCCG has developed multiple strategies for addressing these challenges We have successfully employed a number of approaches for connecting with our gardeners. In addition to regular email announcements and social media posts, we have developed a monthly newsletter in partnership with St. Norbert College and volunteers from the community. This newsletter is disseminated in print and digital forms, and occasionally includes translations. In addition, as needed, we call gardeners by phone who do not use internet. When reaching out to our community members who do not speak English, however, face-to-face oral communications are a necessity. We are fortunate to have a director, Margaret Franchino, who is fluent in Spanish as well as English. In recent years, we have also been successful in soliciting community volunteers and paid interpreters for in-person interpretation services. Without these volunteer interpreters, many in our Hmong community would have difficulty registering for a plot, thus decreasing access to the services we provide. Without volunteers translators, as well, our Western Ave. Garden might not have provided such a meaningful service to the Somali community in the last two years.

*Information based on 2017 gardener registration data. For full demographic data, see Appendix B.


BCCG in the Community

What is this diagram?

The diagram above was initially intended to inform BCCG’s communications, and stands on advanced methods in writing theory. It represents the “ecology” in which the program operates: the network of relationships, activities, and material realities in which its communications are embedded. This ecological framework has become an important way of understanding—and representing—the highly complex circumstances in which an organization like BCCG exists, acts, and communicates.* This specific map shows a picture of BCCG’s ecology at the present moment—the network of connections and activities it has developed in recent years. It was designed partly though interview research, and was revised and improved in the process of developing this report.**

*On the ecological conception of writing, see Sidney Dobrin, Postcomposition (Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 2011). **These data were analyzed using a postmodern mapping approach—on which, see Sharon J. McGee, “Overcoming Disappointment: Constructing Writing Program Identity Through Postmodern Mapping,” in Discord and Direction: The Postmodern Writing Program Administrator, edited by Sharon J. McGee and Carolyn Handa (Logan: Utah State University Press, 2005), 59-71.

What does this diagram reveal?

BCCG is a complex program that is deeply embedded in the greater Green Bay community. This map captures how the program has established relationships with over thirty local groups and organizations. As a result of these relationships, BCCG has been able to advance a range of projects, programs, and initiatives that complement its 10 central community gardens. Furthermore, BCCG’s recent growth has been accompanied by a range of positive impacts on the local community. For these reasons, it is possible to see our program’s complexity as sign of its health.


2017 PROGRAM IMPACTSIMPERIAL PRIDE

COMMUNITY NIGHT

GREEN BAY GARDEN BLITZ

TEEN FARMERS’ MARKET

PLANTING FOR A PURPOSE

CHILDREN’S GARDEN EDUCATION PARKEE PROGRAM

GARDEN COALITION

VETERANS’ GARDEN

2017 Programs and Projects*BCCG has a history of education and outreach Our stated mission is to “empower all county residents to grow healthy food by providing resources and organizational capacity.” To us, empowering people entails providing our community with the knowledge, skills, and passion for gardening. For that reason, BCCG has been engaged with a broad range of programs and partners. Historically, we have offered programs on gardening and nutrition education, usually in partnership with the Extension FoodWIse program. A current example of this ongoing effort is our Teen Farmers’ Market Program. We have also been instrumental in installing raised bed gardens at partnering organizations all over town. Most recently, we have done so by partnering with New Leaf Foods, Inc. to run the Green Bay Garden Blitz and its associated mentorship program. As a result of this and other efforts, permanent gardens are now installed in personal homes, community organizations, and schools across the County.

19 different garden neighbors have participated. An average of 5 garden neighbors participate weekly.

Up to 6 veterans garden weekly.

122 volunteers installed 127 gardens boxes. 20 new gardeners were mentored.

10 teens ran 3 farmers’ markets in August.

32 community members have signed up to donate produce to food pantries.

About 18 children gardened weekly for 8 weeks.

8 food security organizations have begun to collaborate.

*For details on each program, see Appendix C.


Children’s Gardening Education Parkee Program

Garden Coalition

Imperial Pride Community Night

Veterans’ Garden

Green Bay Garden Blitz

Teen Farmers’ Market

Planting for a Purpose

Programs and Projects

Program Partners

Green Bay Vet Center

New Leaf Foods, Inc.

Boys and Girls Club of Greater Green Bay

Local food pantries

City of Green Bay Parks Department

Grants and Donationsfor Programs and Projects

In-Kind Donations of Plants and SeedsEast High West High UWGB Heirloom Plant Sale Lindsley’s Greenhouse Peaceful Valley Farm & Garden Supply Stein’s Garden & Home Schroeder's Flowers

Grants and Monetary DonationsGreen Bay Packers Give Back Green Bay Packers Foundation The Greater Green Bay Community Foundation The East-Metro Region Innovative Grant Program St Norbert Abbey Augustine Stewardship Fund Trust Grant Nature’s Way Rotary Club of Green Bay SeedMoney The Lady Bug Garden Club Helfenstein Soup Council Donation from individual community members

In-Kind Donations of Labor, and Other SuppliesS&D Tree Services, LLC US Venture, Inc Willems Landscape Service, Inc Volunteer labor Brown County UW-Extension Food WIse

2017 Programs and Partners


Tota

l Num

ber o

f Hou

rs

0

175

350

525

700

2016 Season2017 Season

Volunteerism and Community Outreach

BCCG relies on volunteer assistance Because participants rent and maintain their own garden space, little volunteer support is needed for individual garden plots. However, BCCG relies on volunteers for overall garden maintenance projects, as well as for special projects. Ongoing maintenance tasks include weeding garden paths, spreading wood chips, and caring for communal perennial garden areas. In addition, volunteers help with special events and seasonal tasks, including the program’s garden registration, garden staking, an annual pumpkin party, and garden cleanup. Volunteers further assist with special projects as they arise. For example, a construction company volunteered its expertise to install a gazebo at the Olde North Garden in 2015, and volunteers constructed the Veterans’ Garden in a day-long build event in the spring of 2017.

BCCG volunteers include non-gardeners and organized groups Although registered gardeners perform a variety of general volunteer tasks, BCCG also depends on individual community members and organized groups. Corporate groups increasingly volunteer in the gardens on organized team-building and community outreach days. In addition, many youth groups volunteer over the course of the growing season, often as part of mission trips. In 2017, volunteers also included a group of clients from Curative Connections who volunteer in the gardens as a way to gain job skills. To date, total 2017 volunteer hours are nearly double 2016’s season total. We believe this is because organizations increasingly contact BCCG for volunteer opportunities as recognition of the program’s growth. This increased volunteerism has been necessary for facilitating and maintaining our program as it has expanded in recent years.

2016 Volunteerism and Community OutreachGardens Outside the City Gardens Inside the City All Gardens

# of visits by coordinator in 2016 24 95 119

% of all coordinator garden visits 20% 80%# of children's education programs and community events 0 53 53

% of all programs and events 0% 100%# of supervised volunteer workdays at garden 2 10 12

% of supervised volunteer workdays 17% 83%

Recorded Volunteer Hours:*

*For our records of volunteer hours, see Appendix D.


BCCG’s recent story is one of rejuvenation. By the end of 2012, the program had been reduced to five gardens with no coordinator, no programs, and no funding. It was at that moment that Karen Early, Brown County UW-Extension Food WIse Coordinator, solicited community involvement to revitalize the program—specifically bringing in Cheryl Williams as volunteer coordinator. The UW-Extension then secured two AmeriCorps VISTA positions to support a paid coordinator. Our current director, Margaret Franchino, was originally brought on through the AmeriCorps program. Since then, Margaret has revitalized the program through grant writing and volunteer coordination. With Margaret taking over those duties, Cheryl was able to petition both the City of Green Bay and Brown County to co-fund the coordinator position for two years. A tireless volunteer, Cheryl now leads a group setting up an endowment to support community gardening permanently.

Program History: 2012 - 2017*

*Program Funding in Crisis 2012Gardens that remain open: 8th St. Garden, Maple and Augusta Garden, 5th St. Garden, Church Rd. Garden, Oneida Garden

Coordinator (Full-Time)

Program Funding

Gardens

Secondary Impacts

Employee/Volunteer (Part-time)

2013-2014: Abby Puckhaber (Full Time Program Coordinator)

2013: Cheryl Williams (Volunteer Program Coordinator)

2013-14: AmeriCorps VISTA

20142014: Olde North Garden Opens

UW-Extension Garden Opens

2013: Community Church Garden Opens 2013

2017

2014

2014-Present: Margaret Franchino (Full Time Coordinator)

2017: Bethany Thier (Part Time Teen Farmers’ Market Coordinator)

2016: Kaila Stencil (Part Time Teen Farmers’ Market Coordinator)

2014-2017: Cheryl Williams (Volunteer Mentor)

2016-17: Brown County Tax Levy City of Green Bay Community Development Block Grant UW-Extension East-Metro Region Innovative Grant St. Norbert Augustine Stewardship Fund Trust Greater Green Bay Community Foundation Grant

2015: AmeriCorps VISTA UW-Extension East Metro Region Innovative Grant Program Brown County Tax Levy City of Green Bay Community Development Block Grant

2017:Veterans’ Garden Opens

2016: Western Ave. Garden Opens Four Seasons Garden Opens Oneida Garden Closes Seymour Garden Leaves BCCG

2015: Imperial Pride Garden Opens Seymour Garden Opens

2017: Outreach to the Vet Center results in the Veterans’ Garden

2015: Outreach to the Somali community results in the Western Ave. Garden

2014: Outreach to the Latinx community results in UW-Extension and Imperial Pride Gardens

* The timeline on this page (and the following pages) was constructed in cooperation with Karen Early and Cathy Huntowksi. The information is partly sourced through program documents and partly the through interviews conducted on 8/10/17 and 9/7/17.


2011: Midway Garden Closes 2010: Mental Health Garden Closes 2009: Imperial Ln. Garden Closes

2010: “Got Dirt?” Garden Initiative Implementation Grant Gardening with Arthritis Grant

2009: FEEDS Garden Development Grant Hmong Marketing Grant UW Medical College Blue Cross Grant

2011

2009

Program History: 2002 - 2011Although BCCG enjoyed a single full-time coordinator for almost a decade, it declined considerably during that time. Bill Wright was brought on as BCCG’s coordinator in 2002 as part of a much larger initiative supported by a major USDA Food Security Grant. While highly impactful during these years, this grant’s funding eventually ran out. BCCG then turned to a series of smaller grants to support specific projects. During this time, however, BCCG lost track of the community outreach that made the program so vibrant in the past. It then shrank considerably. By 2012, BCCG was reduced to five gardens, and the program was in serious crisis.

2002-2012: Bill Wright(Full Time Program Coordinator)

2004

2001

2004: Oneida Garden Opens Mental Health Garden Opens Soul Food Garden Closes Marley St. Garden Closes

2003: Jackson St. Garden Opens Church Rd. Garden Opens Elmview Rd. Garden Opens Perrot St. Garden Opens Midway Rd. Garden Opens Chestnut and Arndt Garden Opens

2001-2004: USDA Food Security Grant USDA Farmers’ Market Assistance Grant United Way Plant a Row For the Hungry Program.

2004: USDA Food Security Grant results in On Broadway Market, with space for Hmong gardeners to sell their produce

2002: Plant a Row for the Hungry program brings first fresh produce to local Food Pantries

2009

2005

2008-2012:Elderly and Disabled Outreach

2008: FEEDS Garden Development Grant 2007: FEEDS Garden Development Grant UW-Extension District Management Hmong Farmers Project 2006: Farm Business Mentoring Grant 2005: Catholic Diocese Campaign for Human Development

2007: Jackson St. Garden Closes Chestnut and Arndt Garden Closes

2006: Elmview Rd. Garden Closes

2005: Perrot St. Garden Closes


Program Funding

Gardens

Secondary Impacts


2007: Blong Vang (Part Time Hmong Farmers’ Project Manager)

2006: Dan Vue (Part Time Hmong Market Manager)

2005-2009 Karen Early Cathy Huntowski (Part Time)

2001-2002 Karen Early Cathy Huntowski (Part Time Grant Writers)


2000: Soul Food Garden Opens Marley St. Market Garden Opens

1999: Chestnut Garden Closes

1999-2000: Catholic Diocese of Green Bay Campaign for Human Development City of Green Bay Community Development Block Grant

1999: Greater Green Bay Community Foundation Grant NRCS EQIP Grant UW-Extension Urban Initiative

2001

1999

Program History: 1994 - 2001BCCG originated as part of our community’s first major effort at addressing food insecurity. The program was first developed through a series of Hunger Prevention Grants written by the FoodWIse nutrition program coordinator, Karen Early. The mission of those grants included community garden development and multicultural outreach—especially with the local Hmong community—to address findings of a USDA Household Food Security Study. This outreach peaked in 2001-2004, when the UW-Extension nutrition program staff Karen Early and Cathy Huntowski secured a USDA Food Security Grant to support the growing Hmong community. Through this grant, new gardens, markets, and community infrastructures were created to empower Hmong gardeners to sell produce and develop food-related enterprises. This initiative ultimately brought the On Broadway Market to the greater Green Bay community in 2004. During this time, Paul Van Ryzen was hired as full time garden coordinator, who grew program’s total gardening space to 17 acres.

2001-2002 No Coordinator

1999-2001: Paul Van Ryzin (Full Time Program Coordinator)

1996

1994

1996: Chestnut Ave. Garden Opens

1994-1996: Wisconsin Hunger Prevention Grants

1994-1996: Hunger Prevention Grants result in the formation of Brown County’s first major food security initiative, including the formation of BCCG and ongoing outreach with the Hmong community.

1998

1997

1998: Outreach to the Latinx community results in Imperial Ln. Garden (in partnership with Green Bay Police)

1997-2001: Outreach to the African American community results in Soul Food Garden.

2008: FEEDS Garden Development Grant 2007: FEEDS Garden Development Grant 2006: Farm Business Mentoring Grant 2005-2009: Catholic Diocese Campaign for Human Development UW-Extension District Management Hmong Farmers Project

1998: 5th St. Garden Opens Maple and Augusta Garden Opens Imperial Ln. Garden Opens

1997: 8th St. Garden Opens


Program Funding

Gardens

Secondary Impacts


1997-1998 Vanessa Alexander (Part Time Program Coordinator)

1996-1997: Karen Early Cathy Huntowski (Part Time Program Coordinators)

1996-1997: Karen Early (Part-Time)

Cathy Huntowski (Part-Time)

2000: USDA Food Security Grant written to support production and marketing opportunities for the Hmong Community, including the Marley St. Garden and new farmers’ markets.


2017 Budget and Expenses

*For our calculation of produce values, see Appendix E. **Estimated at 5% of Brown County UW-Extension's total annual expenses.

While BCCG funds specific projects through external grants, the day-to-day operations of our 10 main gardens create expenses in two main areas: general program costs and the coordinator’s salary and associated costs. General program costs include all garden supplies, administrative supplies, program services, and staff costs beyond salary. This budget for general program expenses is primarily funded by gardeners’ plot rental fees ($10-$45 per plot), and supplemented with small donations and

fundraisers. In 2017, the total general expense budget came to $7,533. These registration fees, however, are not always able to cover major expenses when they occur. For example, our water tank at Church Road must be transported regularly on a trailer to be refilled. That trailer is badly in need of replacement after this season, and we may not be able to cover those costs with registration fees alone. We are looking into small grants to supplement those registration fees for this purpose.

BCCG requires year-round work. Our services depend on regular grant-writing, garden relocation, garden maintenance, community outreach, volunteer coordination, and other program management. For that reason, this program demands a full-time coordinator, whose annual staffing costs (including benefits) totaled at $42,903 in 2017. The coordinator’s salary is currently funded by Brown County tax levy dollars, as well as Community Development Block Grant monies administered by the City of Green Bay. However, that coordinator also receives the benefit of UW-Extension oversight, technological support, and other administrative fees, totaling an additional estimated $11,704. This number does not account for costs associated with larger UW-Extension programming, such as the UW-Extension lawyer’s fees in the creation of land-use agreements.

Combining all these expenses, BCCG’s total 2017 program budget came to $61,510. This figure is worth putting in conversation with the produce value generated in the gardens themselves—an estimated $291,358. In other words, for every $1 spent on the program, our community receives an average of $4.74 in economic relief.

BCCG ExpensesUW-Extension Expenses**

Coordinator Salary $31,320 Indirect Costs $4,799Benefits $8,434 Technology Services $3,796

Tax $2,435 Program Support $2,366

Workers' Comp $714 Insurance Costs $91

General Program

Expenses $7,533 Credit Card Service Fees $22

Total: $50,436 Total: $11,074Total program costs: $61,510

Estimated Value of

Gardens’ Produce* $291,358

FOR EVERY $1 SPENT ON THE PROGRAM, OUR COMMUNITY RECEIVES AN AVERAGE OF $4.74 IN ECONOMIC RELIEF.


2017 Program Reach by Income and Household*

BCCG serves both gardeners and their families Because our program has been funded by the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), we are asked collect information every year about the household size and income of each of our gardeners. For that reason, we know how big individual gardeners’ household sizes are, and what income category each of our gardeners’ households fall in. We can therefore gauge how many people are served in addition to individual gardeners. In 2017, for example, we have information from 197 gardeners that tell us that we provide produce for 432 additional family members—a total of 620 people! Importantly, these data only tell us about gardeners’ immediate households. They don’t tell us how many other friends and community members benefit from our gardeners’ work.

BCCG primarily serves “Low-to-Moderate Income” (LMI) families Among the 197 gardeners who filled out the CDBG form in 2017, 72% are classified as LMI. In 2017 alone, this means that our 105 low-income gardeners live in households that make less than 50% of the area’s annual median income, and that our 37 moderate-income gardeners live in households that make 50-80% of the area’s annual median income. The actual income figure for these gardeners ranges by household size. For example, our 21 low-income gardeners who live in a single-person household makes less than $23,350 annually, whereas 6 of our low-income gardeners help support a household of 8 with an annual income less than $40,890.

122

Moderate-to High Income

361

137

2017 Total Individuals (including family members)

Low Income

Low-to-Moderate Income

*Data based on a form mandated by the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) that gardeners fill out at registration. In 2017, we did not collect these data from 14 gardeners. For full CDBG data, see Appendix F.


Total Households Affected

2016 Season

2017 Season

0-50%-of Area Median Income (Low Income) 105 10550-80% of Area Median Income (Low-to-Moderate Income) 52 37Over 80% of Area Median Income (Moderate-to-High Income) 39 55

Households

Num

ber o

f Hou

seho

lds

Impa

cted

0

28

55

83

110

2016 Season 2017 Season

Low-Income Low-Moderate IncomeModerate-to-High Income

Total Individuals Impacted

2016 Season

2017 Season

0-50%-of Area Median Income (Low Income) 346 36150-80% of Area Median Income (Low-to-Moderate Income) 183 122Over 80% of Area Median Income (Moderate-to-High Income) 94 137

Num

ber o

f Ind

ivid

uals

Impa

cted

0

100

200

300

400

2016 Season 2017 Season

Individuals

*Data based on a form mandated by the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) that gardeners fill out at registration. In 2016, 7 gardeners did not fill out the form. In 2017, we did not collect these data from 14 gardeners. For full CDBG data, see Appendix F.

Program Data by Income and Household*


Program Reach for Very Low Income Households*

In the last two gardening seasons, we have experienced a shift in the income distribution of our population. As the charts on the previous page demonstrate, 16 more moderate-to-high income gardeners and 15 fewer low-to-moderate income gardeners have signed up for a plot. However, this is not to suggest that fewer LMI individuals are being served by the program. This year, in fact, we provide plots to 8 more gardeners at the very lowest income level (0-30% of the area median income). Taking those gardeners’ whole households into account, BCGG is proud to report that it now supports 57 more individuals at the lowest income level than it did last year. While we are pleased to increase our services to the low-income community, we also see the economic diversity of our gardeners as a major benefit of this program. Our gardens bring together people with and without means towards a common goal: providing for themselves and their families.

2016 - 2017 Families with Very Low Income Served by BCCG

Num

ber I

mpa

cted

0

60

120

180

240

Households Individuals Impacted

2016 Season 2017 SeasonVery Low Income Gardeners Served (0-30%-of Area Median Income)

2016 Season

2017 Season

Households Affected 59 67Individuals Impacted 177 234

*Data based on a form mandated by the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) that gardeners fill out at registration. In 2017, we did not collect these data from 14 gardeners. For full CDBG data, see Appendix F.


2017 Economic Impacts: Overview*

2017 Data8th Street

Extension Office

Four Seasons

Olde North

5th Street

Imperial Pride

Maple & Augusta

Church Rd

Western Avenue

Comm-unity Church

All Gardens

Number of

Gardeners 11 11 13 16 17 19 22 25 33 44 211

% of All Gardeners 5.2% 5.2% 6.2% 7.6% 8.1% 9.0% 10.4% 11.8% 15.6% 20.9%

Total square feet 7,136 12,400 32,000 816 133,100 1,937 10,800 67,500 6,000 33,600 178,989

Estimated Value of

Crops $25,604 $2,009 $50,223 $3,509 $17,490 $11,029 $23,635 $79,274 $12,999 $65,586 $291,358% of Total Produce

Value 8.8% 0.7% 17.2% 1.2% 6.0% 3.8% 8.1% 27.2% 4.5% 22.5%Produce Value Per

Gardener $2,328 $183 $3,863 $219 $1,029 $580 $1,074 $3,171 $394 $1,491 $1,381Produce Value per

Square Foot $2.37 $2.46 $1.57 $1.81 $2.45 $1.84 $1.91 $1.17 $1.91 $1.95 $1.63

BCCG offers a space for gardeners across the community to provide their own food. In doing so, Brown County residents can save a significant amount of money on groceries. We are able to provide a rough estimate of that impact by calculating the cash value of the produce generated each season. The chart below shows the relative size and reach of the gardens both inside and outside of city limits. This allows us to draw a few general conclusions about our 2017 season’s economic impact*:

• BCCG as a whole generated around $291,358 for 211 families.

• Gardens inside the city generated $96,275 in produce for 130 families

• Gardens outside the city generated $195,083 in produce for 82 families.

Our Gardens Provide Meaningful Economic Relief

*For our calculation of produce values, see Appendix E. For full data and analysis of individual gardens and their estimated economic impact, see Appendix G.

Denotes gardens outside the city.


2017 Economic Impact: City vs. CountyWhile the gardens in Green Bay serve more local gardeners, the gardens outside the city provide significantly more space to grow food. This means that those gardens produce a larger economic impact—even though they serve fewer individuals. Roughly speaking, gardens outside the city produce about two thirds of the gardens’ total produce value, but serve only about one third of gardeners registered by BCCG (38.7%). The inverse can be said about the gardens within the city: they produce only one third of the gardens’ total produce value, but serve almost two thirds of our gardeners (61.3%).

2017 Data

Gardens Oustide

Green BayGardens In Green Bay All Gardens

# of Gardeners 82 129 211

# of LMI Gardeners 45 96 141

Number of Plots 107 207 314

Total Square Feet 133100 45889 178989Value of Crops Produced in 2017 $195,083 $96,275 $291,358Produce Value Per Gardener $2,379 $741 $1,374Produce Value per Square Foot $1.47 $2.10 $1.63

Gardens in Green Bay provide many families with modest economic relief Gardeners with plots inside the city received on average $741 in produce value per household during the 2017 growing season. This relief is distributed across a much greater number of people than the county gardens. City gardens provide relief to 96 Low-To-Moderate Income (LMI) individuals—68.1% of our program’s total LMI population. Furthermore, we estimate these gardens to be more productive than gardens outside the city, making gardeners $2.10 per square foot. By these metrics, we are happy to say that our gardens inside the city efficiently serve more individuals that need the economic relief that BCCG provides.

Gardens outside Green Bay provide greater economic relief for fewer families In total, gardens outside the city produce much more value for our gardeners. The larger plots available outside of the city provided our gardeners, on average, with $2,379 in produce value per person during the 2017 growing season. However, this relief is distributed among fewer gardeners—39% of our total gardeners and 32% of our total LMI gardeners. Although these gardeners receive more economic relief, garden productivity is lower in the gardens outside the city, producing about $1.40 per square foot.

*For our calculation of produce values, see Appendix E. For full data and analysis of individual gardens and their estimated economic impact, see Appendix G. On the distinction between city and county gardens, see Appendix A.


Community Perspectives: Economic ReliefBCCG is proud to report that we have promoted a strong perception of economic benefit among our gardeners. When surveyed in 2016, about 70%, our gardeners reported that they found it easier to provide food for their family because of their participation in BCCG.* When inexpensive food is regularly available, of course, a more general sense of economic relief follows. Of the 2016 survey respondents, 88.5% reported that they spent less money on food as a result of participating in the community gardens. This number compares favorably to the to 80% of respondents who gave the same answer in 2015, suggesting that BCCG gardeners are increasingly perceiving—and presumably enjoying—economic relief as a result of our program.

These responses are especially impressive when considering the economic position of our gardeners. In 2017, at least 68% of our gardeners are classified as “Low-To-Moderate Income” (LMI). When taking gardeners’ households into account, we serve a total of 483 LMI individuals across Brown County. It is unsurprising that this majority-LMI population of gardeners report a positive outlook on their food expenses. While our Planting for a Purpose Program promotes charitable giving to food pantries, BCCG doesn’t just aim to address immediate needs. Our larger goal is to empower local residents to feed themselves, and thereby take increased control of their financial security.

Perc

ent o

f Res

pond

ents

0%

25%

50%

75%

100%

2015 2016

Strongly Agree or AgreeNeither Agree nor DisagreeDisagree or Strongly Disagree

“It was easier to provide enough food for myself and/or my family” “I spent less money on food.”

0%

25%

50%

75%

100%

2015 2016

*Data based on gardener survey responses. Individual items have solicited a range of 53 to 62 responses over the last two years. Thus, our sample represents roughly a quarter of our total gardening population. For full data from the portion of the survey presented in this report, see Appendix H.


Community Perspectives: Health Benefits

"I ate more fruits and vegetables."

"I ate less packaged food."

"I was more physically active."

"I felt less stress in my daily life."

0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

66.1%

88.7%

76.3%

94.9%


*University of Wisconsin Center for Public Affairs and Brown County University of Wisconsin-Extension, Food Insecurity, Barriers, and Possible Solutions: Survey of Brown County At‐Risk Households, Policy Snapshot Reports, Green Bay, WI, 2006, ii-iii. http://www.co.brown.wi.us/i/f/files/FINALFood%20Security%20Report%206-9-2016(2).pdf **Data based on gardener survey responses. Individual items have solicited a range of 53 to 62 responses over the last two years. Thus, our sample represents roughly a quarter of our total gardening population. For full data from the portion of the survey presented in this report, see Appendix H.

Food security is about providing nutritious food to people who are unable to access it for a variety of reasons. BCCG aims to provide a health benefit as well as economic relief. We know that food security is especially important for the “Low-To-Moderate Income” (LMI) populations that form the majority (68%) of our gardening population. A recent study of food pantry consumers in Brown County found that three-fourths of households with children could not feed their families balanced meals because they were unable to afford it. The same study revealed that one-third of adult-only households were unable to focus on obtaining sufficient health care because they could not afford food.* Economic insecurity is also a public health problem.

When residents are given an outlet to grow their own food, they are able to combat the negative health effects of food insecurity. BCCG provides this very service to gardeners across Brown County, most of whom are classified as LMI. While we have not measured our impacts on gardeners’ health directly, we do administer an annual survey whose results consistently suggest that our program promotes a healthy lifestyle.** In our 2016 survey, the vast majority of our respondents (94.9%) reported that, as a result of the program, they consumed more fruits and vegetables—a noteworthy increase from 2015 (82.1%). This increase in healthy food consumption seems related to a decrease in eating unhealthy food; in both 2015 and 2016, about 75% of respondents reported that they ate less packaged food as a result of the program. Finally, BCCG seems to be providing health benefits to gardeners beyond healthier eating. As the charts above demonstrate, a majority of our gardeners consistently report having less stress and more physical activity than they would if they had not been part of our program. As such, we conclude that our program fosters meaningful improvements in our gardeners’ health.

Percent of Respondents in 2016


http://www.co.brown.wi.us/i/f/files/FINALFood%20Security%20Report%206-9-2016(2).pdf




Survey Responses: Community Health Benefits*

*Data based on gardener survey responses. Individual items have solicited a range of 53 to 62 responses over the last two years. Thus, our sample represents roughly a quarter of our total gardening population. For full data from the portion of the survey presented in this report, see Appendix H.

2015

2016

Percent of Respondents 0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

88.7%

81.1%


2015

2016

Percent of Respondents

0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

94.9%

82.1%

“I was more physically active.” “I ate more fruits and vegetables.”

2015

2016


76.3%

74.1% 2015

2016


66.1%

64.8%

“I ate less packaged food.” “I felt less stress in my daily life.”

“I felt more connected to my neighborhood.” “I spent more time with my family.”

2015

2016


62.3%

59.3% 2015

2016


55.2%

50%


Olde North Garden

Veterans’ Garden

Community Perspectives: City Beautification

“In the Brown County area, there are a lot of spaces that are still pretty empty. And I don't know if the County will allow us to have someone bring a tractor out there, and just dig it out, and let the Hmong people come and take care of it." -Wa Yia Thao, Community Gardener

* Kate Brown and Andrew Jameton, “Public Health Implications of Urban Agriculture,” Journal of Public Health Policy 21.1 (2000): 20-39.** Ioan Voicu and Vicki Been, “The Effect of Community Gardens on Neighboring Property Values,” Real Estate Economics 36.2 (2008): 241-283.

We turn unused lots into spaces for local neighborhoods to come together to grow. Olde North Garden, for example, was once an unappealing vacant lot on Irwin Ave. and Smith St. Now it stands as a positive community development showpiece for downtown Green Bay. Our new Veterans’ Garden, too, has brought new life to an empty field for vets who are clients of the Green Bay Vet Center—a valuable resource to promote the healing mission of that project. What’s more, the green environment supplied by community gardens has been shown to provide a range of psychological benefits for entire communities.* Their beauty serves us all.

This beauty also has economic value. An oft-cited study found that community gardens were shown in New York City to improve the property values of local neighborhoods. This was especially true of high-quality gardens in impoverished areas.** While we have not yet calculated the specific impacts of our gardens on neighboring properties, we are confident that that the beauty of our community gardens provides similar benefits across Brown County—aesthetically, psychologically, and economically.


“BCCG has given us a space to live out our culture, passing down cultivation techniques and culinary tastes to a new generation.”

As part of a larger 2001-2004 USDA Food Security Grant initiative, BCCG and the UW-Extension have been proud to support Hmong gardeners by:

• Creating space to grow food for sale • Establishing new markets to sell

produce • Purchasing produce scales for rental to

market gardeners • Introducing a commercial kitchen in the

Hmong Community Center • Providing scholarships for 75 gardeners

to complete the NWTC Food Safety and Sanitation certification

•

Growing food is at the core of Hmong culture. It is a tradition that we have carried with us for a very long time, through many difficult relocations. We farmed the land long before we walked side-by-side with America during the Vietnam War, rescuing downed American pilots and harassing Communist troops. We carried this tradition with us after our American allies withdrew from southeast Asia in 1975, forcing many of us to escape persecution at the hands of the new Communist government in Laos. The Hmong people gardened even after we found a new home in the Thai refugee camps, growing food behind our houses for years—even decades—as we raised a new generation in a new country. When the camps began to close between 1992 and 2004, we were again compelled to bring our culture to new homes around the world. 300,000 of us now live and garden in America, and over 60,000 of us do so in Wisconsin alone.

Our ability to grow food here in Wisconsin is crucial to our well-being. More specifically, the Brown County Community Gardens program (BCCG) has allowed us to thrive even after this second major relocation—a serious stress that has, sadly, led some people in our community to commit suicide. BCCG has helped alleviate this stress by acting as a cultural site for the Hmong people. It has given us a space to live out our culture, passing down cultivation techniques and culinary tastes to a new generation in a new home. And yet the gardens do not only foster these generational ties. They also provide a space for our community to help others, and to lend our wisdom and experience to farmers and gardeners in this area. In short, BCCG has allowed us to take root, grow, and flourish with the greater Green Bay community.

We hope that BCCG will be able to continue providing this service to the Hmong people, so that we can continue to enrich ourselves and our local communities. For that reason, we urge the City of Green Bay and the Brown County governments to collaborate as they make funding and administrative decisions that affect BCCG. We do not want to compete internally about BCCG. We should instead provide a model of governance that inspires other communities to follow. We therefore invite both the City of Green Bay and Brown County to work together with the Hmong community to convert unused land into new and culturally-appropriate spaces to garden. We believe that BCCG can help gardeners across the community come together and learn from one another.

—Wa Yia Thao, Board Member, Wisconsin United Coalition of Mutual Assistance Associations

“WE BELIEVE THAT BCCG CAN HELP THE HMONG PEOPLE COME TOGETHER AND LEARN WITH OTHERS, SO THAT OUR WHOLE COMMUNITY CAN BE MORE PRODUCTIVE.”

* This statement was developed from interview data generated on 7/28/17. It was subsequently reviewed, edited, and approved by Wa Yia Thao on 8/15/17.

Statement from the Hmong Community*


THE IMPERIAL PRIDE GARDEN SERVES 19 GARDENERS AND THEIR FAMILIES—ABOUT 9% OF THE TOTAL GARDENING POPULATION.

Brown County Community Gardens (BCCG) has offered the Imperial Pride Garden for three growing seasons. During that time, Imperial Pride has become a major resource for the Spanish-speaking community in the area. Although members of our community range from experienced farmers to first-time gardeners, we all value the ability to grow our own food in our own neighborhood. Gardening is not just a hobby for us, but a livelihood. Imperial Pride gardeners preserve food to feed ourselves during the cold season. When freezer space runs out, we share produce with others, so that our whole community benefits. In this way, Imperial Pride provides real economic support for our whole neighborhood.

*This statement was drafted based on focus group data generated on 8/8/17. A translation was subsequently reviewed, approved, and edited by interviewees on 8/15/17. Several translators deserve credit for facilitating this process: Margaret Franchino from BCCG as well as Marcie Paul and Luis Navarro-Ayala from St. Norbert College.

**For our calculation of produce values, see Appendix E.

Statement from Latinx Gardeners at Imperial Pride*

$11,029 worth of produce in the 2017 growing season came from the Imperial Pride garden, suppling many families with access to healthy food.**

The Imperial Pride Garden is 6,000 square feet in area—about 3.4% of BCCG’s total gardening footprint.

“Many people in our community have not been able to secure a plot at Imperial Pride, leaving them unable to directly access the value that it provides.”

Our community believes that such support can and should grow by expanding Imperial Pride. We believe that the gardening season should be extended, for example, by plowing earlier in the Spring and later in the Fall. This will help resolve the problems we faced in 2016, when many of us were forced to pull our crops before our produce was fully ready. Further, the Imperial Pride community strongly desires more space to garden. Many people in our community have not been able to secure a plot at Imperial Pride, leaving them unable to directly access the value that it provides. Those of us that do have plots already are forced to sow them too thickly, which is not good for the crops. With expanded borders and a longer growing season, Imperial Pride will allow those of us in the local Spanish-speaking community to increase our access to our own home-grown food and to the economic relief that this produce can provide.


Statement from Somali Gardeners

“It is the only time we have an access to fresh, organic produce.”• Western Avenue serves 33 gardeners and

their families, though not all of them are from the Somali community. Of these, a large number are “Low-to-Moderate Income” (LMI) families.

• It supplied around $12,999 worth of produce in the 2017 growing season.**

• It is 6800 square feet in area—about 4% of BCCG’s total gardening footprint.

•

“WE NOT ONLY NEED THIS PRODUCE, BUT ALSO WE GIVE IT, AND WE SHARE IT WITH OUR NEIGHBORS—WITH OTHER PEOPLE WHO DON'T HAVE A CHANCE TO TAKE PART IN THE COMMUNITY GARDENS.”

at the Western Avenue Garden*

PROGRAM UPDATE:Habitat for Humanity owns the land that BCCG uses to provide gardening space at Western Ave. At the time of drafting this report, Habitat for Humanity informed BCCG of their intention to develop this land within the next year. This means that Western Avenue must be relocated for the 2018 season. We have surveyed current Western Avenue gardeners about relocation preferences and are looking for an appropriate new location based on these responses.

*This statement was developed from interview and focus group data generated on 6/9/17 and 8/8/17, respectively. The statement itself was reviewed, edited, and approved by interviewees on 8/15/17. This process was facilitated by Abdoulkarim Ismail, a gardener at Western Avenue who provided translation services. **For our calculation of produce values, see Appendix E.

In 2016, Brown County Community Gardens (BCCG) reached out to the Somali community. Visiting us at our mosque and knocking door-to-door, BCCG leaders invited us to sign up for spaces at the Western Avenue Garden, which was then opening near our homes. We want to confirm that this outreach has been very successful, and to express our desire for this garden to grow.

Western Avenue has allowed many of us in the Somali community to connect socially, which is especially important for recent immigrants. The Somali culture is rooted in agricultural traditions; in Somalia, most people either raise livestock as “pastoralists,” or farm the land as “agro-pastoralists.” Those of us who garden at Western Avenue have found a place where we can continue to work and pass time together as our elders have done for so long. But this social benefit is not only for the gardeners in the Somali community. We share the produce we grow at Western Avenue with our neighbors and our families, thereby strengthening ties across our whole community. We have also been able to connect with people outside our community as we speak with, and learn from, other Western Avenue gardeners and BCCG program leaders.

Western Avenue also benefits the Somali community economically. The BCCG growing season is the only time we can access fresh, organic produce. During this time, this garden provides a significant source of income that we might not otherwise have. That benefit is not just enjoyed by those who garden. Because we share so much of our produce with our families and neighbors, the entire Somali community benefits economically from our effort. Additionally, we appreciate how BCCG has been able to provide us with seeds and plants—small donations to our community that only grow in value once planted.

For these reasons, we wish to see Western Avenue expand. Many in our community wish to sign up for a plot there next year, and we worry that space may be limited. We therefore recommend growing the available space so that plots are bigger and more numerous. We have also valued the program’s outreach thus far, and desire more of that outreach. Many of us lack the knowledge for preserving the food we grow, for example; our community would benefit from further education in safe methods for preserving our produce, which might include written materials and in-person demonstrations. Such outreach can help maximize our gardening experience, and the social and economic benefits that come along with it.


PROGRAM GOALS

Address CapacityBCCG has reached capacity in terms of how many sites, gardeners, and programs we can support. Current gardeners have requested multiple acres in additional gardening space, as well as additional locations. Many in the community have requested further garden education programming, as well. However, our garden coordinator works full time throughout the year to support and fund extant programming. Over a several month period, in fact, the coordinator logs up to 50 hours per week to coordinate program kickoffs and garden registration. There is, unfortunately, no way to simplify the current registration process. Due to language barriers and limited access to internet, many gardeners require in-person events, which are time-consuming to coordinate. More research is needed to determine whether this problem with capacity could be alleviated by adopting other community gardens’ models for program administration.

In the past four years, BCCG has focused on program-building. Now that we have reached program capacity, we intend to fine-tune the instruments used to measure program impacts. For example, we understand the present calculations of produce value may be outdated—and perhaps underestimate BCCG’s economic impact on local gardeners. To improve that assessment, we have already taken steps to build a partnership with the Center for Business and Economic Analysis at St. Norbert College. Through that partnership, we hope to update our calculations, and to better measure the local effects of individual gardens. In the longer term, we hope to effect similar improvements to our measurements of additional impacts, including public health, community building, and environmental sustainability.

Improve Assessment Measures


PROGRAM GOALS

Funding has been an ongoing challenge for BCCG. With the support of the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation, community gardeners and local volunteers have begun to raise funds to open an endowment account. Specifically, they have established a provisional Community Garden Fund at the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation. This provisional account is coordinated by an endowment committee that intends to fundraise and to create a formal 501(c)3 to manage the endowment. At the time of publishing this report, we have received funds and commitments totaling $7,865. Once this figure reaches $10,000, the Community Garden Fund becomes fully established and the endowment committee can begin to fundraise on a much larger scale. If successful, this endowment can create sustainable financial support for community gardens.

Create an Endowment

The greater Green Bay area is fortunate to have many local organizations that promote gardening access, participation, and education. These include BCCG, Green Bay Botanical Garden, New Leaf Foods, Inc., The Farmory, The Production Farm, the NWTC CSA Program, UW-Extension Food Wise Program, and others. However, a lack of communication among these organizations has led to the duplication of some services and gaps in others. Additionally, each group’s overall potential is hampered by an unawareness of the others’ resources and assets. For that reason, many community members struggle to differentiate each group’s goals and purposes, which makes it difficult for them to access gardening and its benefits. To address this concern and better meet community needs, BCCG has spearheaded an effort to unite local gardening organizations, define each group’s goals, share resources, and address the community’s gardening needs in a coordinated way.

Build Coalition


APPENDIX A: GARDEN INFORMATION

GARDEN OWNERSHIP SERVICES AND SUPPORT

Four Seasons 471 Four Seasons Dr. Hobart, WI 54155

Land-Use Agreement Signed with Village of Hobart

Volunteer Farmer: Tilling (Paid) Village of Hobart: Water and Grounds Maintenance (Donated) Volunteer Gardeners: General Maintenance

5th Street 621 5th St. Green Bay, WI 54304

Land-Use Agreement Signed with City of Green Bay

City of Green Bay: Tilling, Wood chips, and Grounds Maintenance (Donated) Schroeder’s Flowers: Water (Donated) Volunteers: General Maintenance

8th Street 508 8th St. Green Bay, WI 54304

Land-Use Agreement Signed with City of Green Bay

City of Green Bay: Tilling, Compost, Grounds Maintenance, and Water (Donated) Volunteers: General Maintenance

Maple and Augusta 1028 N Maple Ave Green Bay, WI 54303

Used with Permission of Green Bay Plastics

Green Bay Water Utility: Water (Paid) Green Bay Plastics: Grounds Maintenance (Donated) City of Green Bay: Tilling and Compost (Donated) Volunteer Gardeners: General Maintenance

Church Road 3435 Church Rd. Green Bay, WI 54311

Land-Use Agreement Signed with Sisters of St. Francis of the Holy Cross

Sisters of St Francis: Water and Transportation (Donated) Volunteer Farmer: Tilling (Donated) City of Green Bay: Compost (Donated) Volunteers: General Maintenance

Community Church 600 Cardinal Ln. Green Bay, WI 54313

Land-Use Agreement Signed with Green Bay Community Church

Community Church: Grounds Maintenance (Donated), Message Board (Donated), and Water (Donated and Paid) Volunteer Farmers: Tilling (Donated and Paid) Volunteer Gardeners: General Maintenance

UW-Extension 1150 Bellevue St. Green Bay, WI 54302

Informal Land-Use Agreement with Head Start

Volunteers: Tilling and General Maintenance *This land will not be available after the 2017 growing season.

Olde North 1004 N Irwin Ave. Green Bay, WI 54302

Land-Use Agreement Signed with The Redevelopment Authority of the City of Green Bay

City of Green Bay: Path Maintenance Supplies (Donated) Schroeder’s Flowers: Water (Donated) Volunteer Gardeners: General Maintenance


APPENDIX A: GARDEN INFORMATION, CONTINUED

GARDEN OWNERSHIP SERVICES AND SUPPORT

Imperial Pride 2000 Vine St. Green Bay, WI 54302

Land-Use Agreement Signed with Encompass Early Education and Care, Inc.

Encompass: Grounds Maintenance (Donated) City of Green Bay: Tilling and Compost (Donated) Green Bay Water Utility: Water (Paid) Volunteers: General Maintenance

Western Avenue 1278 Western Ave. Green Bay, WI 54303

Land-Use Agreement Signed with Greater Green Bay Habitat for Humanity.

Habitat for Humanity: Grounds Maintenance (Donated) City of Green Bay: Tilling and Compost (Donated) Green Bay Fire Department: Water (Paid), Labor (Donated) Volunteers: General Maintenance **This land will not be available after the 2017 growing season.

Veterans’ Garden 920 Emmet St. Green Bay, WI 54303

Land-Use Agreement Signed with The Redevelopment Authority of the City ofGreen Bay

City of Green Bay: Tilling, Grounds Maintenance, and Compost (Donated) Green Bay Fire Department: Water (Paid) Labor (Donated) Volunteers: General Maintenance


2017 Gardeners by Internet Usage

Daily 117

Weekly 33

Monthly/Rarely 12

Never 35

No Data Available 14

2017 Gardeners by Gender

Male 50

Female 96


2017 Gardeners by Race

White 75


Asian 52

Hispanic 13

Black/African-American 4

Other 2

2017 Gardeners by Income

Low Income 105

Low-to-Moderate Income 37

Moderate-to-High Income 55


APPENDIX B: DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION*

Volunteer Data 2016 Season 2017 Season

Total Volunteer Hours 346 609Number of Appearances by Individual Volunteers 181 282

*Information based on 2017 gardener registration data.


Gardeners by Municipality*

Home Address Number of Gardeners Percent of Total GardenersAllouez 4 1.9%

Ashwaubenon 2 1.0%

Bellevue 13 6.3%

De Pere 3 1.5%Green Bay 150 72.8%Hobart 7 3.4%Howard 20 9.7%Lawrence 1 0.5%Ledgeview 3 1.5%

Suamico 1 0.5%

Other 2 1.0%

Total* 206 100%Note that 56 gardeners or 27% are living outside of Green Bay’s city limits.

APPENDIX B: DEMOGRAPHIC INFORMATION , CONTINUED

*Information based on 2017 gardener registration data. We do not have these data for 5 gardeners.


APPENDIX C: PROGRAM INFORMATION

PROGRAM AND PARTNER DESCRIPTION FUNDING AND DONATIONS 2017 PROGRAM IMPACTS

Imperial Pride Community Night

All community members—both gardeners and non-gardeners—are invited to a weekly session with the community garden coordinator to work in the garden’s communal plot. Produce is then divided among participants.

East High, West High, UWGB Heirloom Plant Sale, Lindsley’s Greenhouse, Peaceful Valley Farm & Garden Supply (In-Kind Donations of plants and seeds)

19 different garden neighbors have participated.

An average of 5 garden neighbors participate weekly.

Veterans’ Garden

Green Bay Vet Center

Green Bay Packers Give Back

The Veterans’ Garden offers local veterans a space for growing and healing.

Green Bay Packers Give Back (In-Kind, Grant [both labor and funds]); Plants donated by various community members and organizations, including East High, West High, UWGB Heirloom Plant Sale, the Gardeners Club of Green Bay, and Lindsley’s Greenhouse (In-Kind); Mary’s Construction (In-Kind); volunteer labor (In-Kind) Creative Sign Company (In-Kind), Fly-Me Flag (In-Kind)

Up to 6 Veterans garden weekly.

Green Bay Garden Blitz

New Leaf Foods, Inc.

Volunteers install raised garden beds and provide garden mentorship for the greater Green Bay community.

Green Bay Packers Give Back (In-Kind, Grant [both labor and funds]), Green Bay Packers Foundation (Grant), Nature’s Way (Monetary Donation), Rotary Club of Green Bay (Grant), SeedMoney (Grant), The Lady Bug Garden Club (Monetary Donation), Helfenstein Soup Council (Monetary Donation), S&D Tree Services, LLC (In-Kind), Willems Landscape Service, Inc (In-Kind-reduced price on soil), Stein’s Garden & Home (In-Kind), donations from individual community members (Monetary Donation), volunteer labor (In-Kind)

122 weekend event volunteers installed 127 gardens boxes. 20 new gardeners were mentored.


APPENDIX C: PROGRAM INFORMATION, CONTINUED

PROGRAM &PARTNER DESCRIPTION FUNDING AND DONATIONS 2017 PROGRAM IMPACTS

Teen Farmers’ Market

Boys and Girls Club of Greater Green Bay

Teens learn about horticulture, food preservation, and marketing in order to run their own Farmers’ Market.

The Greater Green Bay Community Foundation (Grant). St Norbert Abbey Augustine Stewardship Fund Trust Grant (Grant). The East-Metro Region Innovative Grant Program (Grant). Plants and seeds donated by various community members and organizations, including East High, West High, UWGB Heirloom Plant Sale, and Lindsley’s Greenhouse, Peaceful Valley Farm & Garden Supply (In-Kind)

10 teens ran 3 farmers’ markets in August.

Planting for a Purpose

Green Bay Packers Give Back Local food pantries

Gardeners in the community donate surplus produce to area food pantries in order to make fresh, healthy produce available for pantry consumers.

Green Bay Packers Give Back (Grant).

32 community members signed up to donate produce to food pantries.

Children’s Gardening Education Parkee Program

City of Green Bay Parks Department

Children in five of the City’s Supervised Playgrounds Programs attend weekly gardening sessions throughout the summer, where they tend to their own plot and participate in horticulture lessons.

East High, West High, UWGB Heirloom Plant Sale, Lindsley’s Greenhouse, Peaceful Valley Farm & Garden Supply (In-Kind Donations of plants and seeds)

About 18 children gardened weekly for 8 weeks.


APPENDIX C: PROGRAM INFORMATION, CONTINUED

PROGRAM &PARTNER DESCRIPTION FUNDING AND DONATIONS 2017 PROGRAM IMPACTS

Garden Coalition

New Leaf Foods The Production Farm Green Bay Botanical Garden City of Green Bay East High School Agriscience Preble High School Agriscience Gardeners Club of Green Bay The Farmory

BCCG is spearheading an effort to organize local gardening groups, encourage collaboration, and build partnerships in funding and sustainability.

US Venture, Inc (In-Kind) 10 food security organizations have begun to collaborate.


2016 Recorded

Volunteer HoursDate Event Total people Total hoursFeb. 3 Board Meeting 5 37.5Feb. 13 Farmers' Market Booth 1 2Feb. 25 St Norbert Interviews 10 10Mar. 2 Board Meeting 8 6Mar. 2 Gardener Registration 6 10.75Mar. 8 Home Depot/Garden Coalition meeting 1 1.5Mar. 9 Somali Class at Job Center 1 2Mar. 17 Western Ave. Planning 1 2Apr. 4 Gardener Registration 5 10Apr. 5 Purchase of Supplies 1 2Apr. 18-19 Canvassing 2 4May 3 Olde North Maintenance 4 5.5May 11 Community Church Maintenence 2 6May 15 Tank stand building 1 20May 16 8th st Maintenance 6 4.5May 17 Imperial Pride Maintenance 2 2Jun. 15 5th St and Imperial Pride Maintenance 5 12.5Jun. 21 Western Ave Maintenance 10 20Jul. 26 Imperial Pride Maintenance 8 16Jun. 27 Straw Bale Delivery 1 3Jun. 28 Olde Norht Maintenance 8 16Jul. 30 Imperial Pride Maintenance 19 57Aug. 2 Garden Maintenance 1 7.5Aug. 6 Incred Edible Garden Tour 1 1.5Sept. 10 20th Anniversary 14 42Sept. 15 Olde North Maintenance 8 16Oct. 21 Church Rd Final Inspection 5 10

Oct. 25Community Church and 5th St Inspection 4 8

(April-November) Estimated General Volunteerism 41 41

2016 Totals

181 Appearances by

Volunteers

346 Hours

APPENDIX D: VOLUNTEER HOURS


2017 Recorded Volunteer HoursDate Event Total people Total hoursFeb. 4 Hmong Lunch 5 20Feb. 6 Board Meeting 4 6Feb. 13 Board Meeting 4 4Mar. 4 Gardener Registration 4 4Mar. 27 Board Meeting 6 6Apr. 5 Garden Renewal 4 6Apr. 11 Canvassing 2 2Apr. 24 Board Meeting 3 3Apr. 30 Western Ave Maintenance 1 4May 9 Packers Garden Build 21 42May 15 Garden Maintenance 5 11.25May 17 Four Seasons Maintenance 1 3.5

May 185th St., 8th St., Imperial Pride, and Maple St. Maintenance 10 10

May 22 Church Rd. and Imperial Pride Maintenance 7 18.5May 23 Board Meeting 6 6Jun. 5 5th St. Maintenance 5 17.5

Jun. 12-135th St., Western Ave., and Old North Maintenance 23 73.5

Jun. 15 Western Ave. Maintenance 1 1Jun. 19 5th St. Maintenance 5 17.5Jun. 26 Board Meeting 4 4Jun. 26 Extension Maintenance 5 17.5Jun. 27 5th St. Maintenance 8 20Jul. 3 Olde North Maintenance 3 10.5Jul. 10 Imperial Pride Maintenance 4 14Jul. 11 5th St. and Olde North Maintenance 20 40Jul. 17 Imperial Pride Maintenance 4 14

Jul. 18Community Church and Four Seasons Maintenance 32 64

Jul. 20 Maple St. Maintenance 12 24Jul. 24 Western Ave. Maintenance 5 17.5Jul. 26 Board Meeting 2 2Jul. 27 Olde North Maintenance 10 20Jul. 31 Olde North Weeding 5 17.5Aug. 1 Vet's Garden and Church Rd. Maintenance 9 17Aug. 2 Olde North Maintenance 18 45Aug. 5 Incredible Edible Garden Tour 1 1Aug. 7 5th St compost 6 21Aug. 14 Olde North Weeding 3 10.5Aug. 22 Imperial Pride Maintenance 4 14Aug-Sept* Graphic Design 1 200

2017 Totals

282 Appearances by

Volunteers

609 Hours

APPENDIX D: VOLUNTEER HOURS

*Special Assignment


APPENDIX E: COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT DATA - 2016 & 2017*

7 Person

Household

8 Person

HouseholdTotal Households

Affected Total People Impacted

11 4 105 346

3 4 52 183

0 0 39 94

2016 Gardener Income by Household

1 Person

Household

2 Person

Household

3 Person

Household

4 Person

Household

5 Person

Household

6 Person

HouseholdVery Low Income (0-50%-of Area Median

Income) 29 22 8 21 4 6Low Income (50-80% of Area Median Income) 10 15 5 3 9 3Moderate-to-High Income (over 80% of Area Median Income) 7 16 10 5 1 0

In 2016, 7 gardeners did not fill out the CDBG form.

2017 Gardener Income by Household

1 Person

Household

2 Person

Household

3 Person

Household

4 Person

Household

5 Person

Household

6 Person

Household

Low Income (0-50%-of Area Median

Income) 29 18 13 13 9 8Low-to Moderate Income (50-80% of Area

Median Income) 7 12 3 4 6 1Moderate-to-High Income (over 80% of Area Median Income) 9 27 12 3 2 0

7 Person Household 8 Person HouseholdTotal Households

Affected Total People Impacted

8 7 105 361

2 2 37 122

0 2 55 137

*In 2017, we did not collect these data from 14 gardeners.


APPENDIX F: CALCULATING PRODUCE VALUE

We calculate produce value using a formula originally circulated as an internal UW-Extension memorandum dated Dec. 1 2006. This formula, which the memorandum credits to the USDA, was originally designed to estimate the crop value of community gardens in 1981: Area x Crop Density x Crop Quality x Length of Season = Value in Dollars. The tables below are used to adjust the formula to provide a more accurate measurement of each criterion. We reproduce these tables below exactly as they appear in the memorandum. We then use an inflation calculator provided by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, available at https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm. We understand this formula to be inexact, and likely in need of updating.

Area x Crop Density x Crop Quality x Length of Season = Value in $ AREA is the square footage in actual crops (excluding paths, walkways, flower beds, etc). CROP DENSITY is the factor for distance between rows. The factors are:

less than 1 ft (beds or wide rows) 1.25

1’ to less than 2’ 1

2’ to less than 3’ 0.85

3’ or more 70

CROP QUALITY is the factor that describes productivity, ie. are the plants healthy and green, buggy, full of holes; will they be harvestable? The factors are:

very good 0.9

good 0.7

fair 0.4

poor 0.25

LENGTH OF SEASON is the factor that accounts for frost free days. The factors are:

300 or more days 1.2

less than 300 days 1.0


https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm

https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm

2017 DataFour Seasons

Community Church

Church Road

Non-Green Bay Subtotal 5th Street

8th Street Park

Maple & Augusta

Extension Office Olde North

Imperial Pride

Western Avenue

Green Bay Subtotal

All Gardens

# of gardeners 13 44 25 82 17 11 22 11 16 19 33 129 211% of total gardeners 6.2% 20.9% 11.8% 38.9% 8.1% 5.2% 10.4% 5.2% 7.6% 9.0% 15.6% 61.1% 100%

# of LMI Gardeners 45 96 141

% of total LMI Gardners 31.9% 68.1% 100%

Number of Plots 16 64 27 107 40 25 31 11 38 28 34 207 314

% of Total Plots 5.1% 20.4% 8.6% 34.1% 12.7% 8.0% 9.9% 3.5% 12.1% 8.9% 10.8% 65.9% 100%Total square feet 32,000 33,600 67,500 133,100 7,136 10,800 12,400 816 1,937 6,000 6,800 45,889 178,989

% of all garden acreage 17.9% 18.8% 37.7% 74.4% 4.0% 6.0% 6.9% 0.5% 1.1% 3.4% 3.8% 25.6% 100%Value of crops produced in 2017 $50,223 $65,586 $79,274 $195,083 $17,490 $25,604 $23,635 $2,009 $3,509 $11,029 $12,999 $96,275 $291,358

% of total produce value 17.2% 22.5% 27.2% 67.0% 6.0% 8.8% 8.1% 0.7% 1.2% 3.8% 4.5% 33.0% 100%Produce Value Per Gardener $3,863 $1,491 $3,171 $2,379 $1,029 $2,328 $1,074 $183 $219 $580 $394 $746 $1,381

Produce Value per Square Foot $1.57 $1.95 $1.17 $1.47 $2.45 $2.37 $1.91 $2.46 $1.81 $1.84 $1.91 $2.10 $1.63

APPENDIX G: ECONOMIC IMPACT DATA BY GARDEN*

Denotes gardens outside of Green Bay.


*On the distinction between city and county gardens, see Appendix A.

2015 Survey ResponsesBecause I participated in the Community Gardens Program…

Strongly Agree or Agree Neutral

Disagree or Strongly Disagree Total

I ate more fruits and vegetables. 46 8 2 56

% 82.1% 14.3% 3.6%

I ate less packaged food. 40 9 5 54% 74.1% 16.7% 9.3%I ate more foods that are traditional for my culture/family background. 26 21 8 55% 47.3% 38.2% 14.5%

I was more physically active. 43 7 3 53

% 81.1% 13.2% 5.7%

I felt less stress in my daily life. 35 18 1 54

% 64.8% 33.3% 1.9%I felt more connected to my neighborhood. 32 19 3 54

% 59.3% 35.2% 5.6%I felt safer in my neighborhood. 25 27 3 55

% 45.5% 49.1% 5.5%

I spent more time with family. 27 21 6 54

% 50.0% 38.9% 11.1%

I gained new gardening skills. 43 10 2 55

% 78.2% 18.2% 3.6%

I spent less money on food. 44 9 2 55

% 80.0% 16.4% 3.6%It was easier to provide enough food for myself and/or my family. 38 13 2 53

% 71.7% 24.5% 3.8%

APPENDIX H: GARDENER SURVEY RESPONSES - 2015


2016 Survey ResponsesBecause I participated in the Community Gardens Program…

Strongly Agree or Agree Neutral

Disagree or Strongly Disagree Total

I ate more fruits and vegetables. 56 2 1 59

% 94.9% 3.4% 1.7%

I ate less packaged food. 45 8 6 59% 76.3% 13.6% 10.2%I ate more foods that are traditional for my culture/family background. 33 22 4 59% 55.9% 37.3% 6.8%

I was more physically active. 47 5 1 53

% 88.7% 9.4% 1.9%

I felt less stress in my daily life. 39 15 5 59

% 66.1% 25.4% 8.5%I felt more connected to my neighborhood. 38 18 5 61

% 62.3% 29.5% 8.2%I felt safer in my neighborhood. 26 27 3 56

% 46.4% 48.2% 5.4%

I spent more time with family. 32 21 5 58

% 55.2% 36.2% 8.6%I gained new gardening skills. 46 14 2 62

% 74.2% 22.6% 3.2%

I spent less money on food. 54 5 2 61

% 88.5% 8.2% 3.3%It was easier to provide enough food for myself and/or my family. 44 13 4 61

% 72.1% 21.3% 6.6%

APPENDIX H: GARDENER SURVEY RESPONSES - 2016


Brown County UW-Extension Community Gardens 210 Museum Place Green Bay, WI 54303 [email protected]

Design provided by The Connected Community Consulting Group. Individual, Organization, and Nonprofit consulting that connects the community with your work. Connect with them at www.connectedcommunityconsulting.com.

Copyright © Brown County UW-Extension Community Gardens, Drew J. Scheler, and Bethany Thier 2017

Brown County UW-Extension Community Gardens acts as guardian of the content in this document, though the materials may be used with credit given to its authors.

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