GROW YOUNGSTOWN A CREATIVE PROJECT SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE MASTER OF LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE BY KYLE T. BARRETT MALCOLM CAIRNS, ADVISOR BALL STATE UNIVERSITY MUNCIE, INDIANA MAY 2010 Table of Contents Table of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Table of Figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Project Inspiration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Chapters 1. Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 a. A New Vision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 b. Project Scope . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 c. Project Goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 d. Assumptions/Delimitations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 e. Moving Forward . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 2. Blast Furnaces to Food Precincts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 3. Sustainable Food System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 a. Sustainable Food System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 b. Sustainable Food City . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 c. Youngstown’s Future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 i. Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 ii. Processing/Transportation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40 iii. Distribution and Food Sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 iv. Consumption and Celebration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 2 v. Waste Recovery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 vi. Education . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 d. Sustainable Food System Response . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 4. Grow Youngstown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 a. Food Precinct . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 i. Design Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 ii. Management Considerations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54 iii. Food Hub . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 iv. Satellite/Neighborhood Branches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 b. Planning Response . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 c. Design Discussion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 i. Food Hub: Inventory and Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 ii. Transition to Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73 iii. Food Hub Concept . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 iv. Master Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 d. Design Summary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97 5. A Look into the Future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 a. Entrepreneurship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .101 b. Seek Precedence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102 c. Food Assessment d. Food Policy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .104 e. Final Remarks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .104 Glossary of Terms Bibliography 3 Table of Figures 1.1 – Land use map (2004) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 1.2 – Future land use map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 1.3 – Census 2000 Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 2.1 – Republic of Steel Mills, 1939 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 2.2 – Youngstown grows with Industry . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 2.3 – Bringing home the bacon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 2.4 – Steeltown Lockdown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 . 2.5 – Population Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 . 2.6 – View entering downtown on Market St. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 2.7 – House near North Heights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 2.8 – Downtown Parking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 2.9 – Federal Street Downtown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 2.10 – Storefront on Federal Street . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 2.11 – Updated housing east of downtown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 2.12 – Vacant land south end of downtown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 2.13 – Abandoned dwelling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 2.14 – Vacant buildings on east side . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 2.15 – Abandoned unused railroad bridge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 2.16 – Abandoned south side business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 2.17 – Vacant residential lot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 4 2.18 – Vacant land use map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 3.1 – Sustainable Food System Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 3.2 – Backyard/Kitchen Garden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 3.3 – .Kitchen Garden . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 3.4 – Theoretical Street Section . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 3.5 – Grape Pergola in a park . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 3.6 – .Shared Land . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 3.7 – Growing in Small Urban Spaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 3.8 – Urban agriculture demonstration garden at City Hall, Vancouver, BC. . . . . . . 40 3.9 – Food Oasis/Food Desert diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42 3.10 – Food Celebration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 3.11 – United States waste breakdown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 3.12 – Toronto Municipal Compost Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 4.1 – Food Precinct network conceptual diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 4.2 – Grow Youngstown Network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56 4.3 – Aerial photo of proposed food hub site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 4.4 – .Pedestrian Shed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 . 4.5 - Context diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 . Gateways . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 4.6 - Site 4.7 – Wean United . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 4.8 – Wean United . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 4.9 – Environment beneath Market Street Bridge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 4.10 – Site Entrances and vehicular connections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 4.11 – Phelps Street government parking lot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 4.12 – Phelps Street site entry conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 4.13 – Connection to convention center lot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 5 4.14 – Rail lines running through Building 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 4.15 – Building 1 interior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 4.16 – Wean United Facility Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 4.17 – Building 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 4.18 – Building 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 4.19 – Building 6 entrance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 4.20 – Overgrown land . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 4.21 – 1910 Panorama of site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 4.22 – 1907 Sanborn Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 4.23 – Topography Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 4.24 – Design Organization. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 4.25 – Site Concept Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 4.26 – Educational Trail Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79 4.27 – Grow Youngstown Land Use Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 4.28 – Grow Youngstown Master Plan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 4.29 – Existing Conditions before Hydroponics 4.30 – Hydroponics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81 4.31 – Plaza present conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 4.32 – Entry plaza future . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84 4.33 – Government Parking Lot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 4.34 – Event Space . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85 4.35 – Current view from convention center parking lot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 4.36 – Edible Entrance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86 4.37 – Republic of Steel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87 4.38 - Current view toward downtown . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 4.39 – Staff worker picking hops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 6 4.40 – Hop House . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 4.41 – Chicken Factory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89 4.42 – Hanging Gardens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90 4.43 – Learning Circle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 4.44 – Community Kitchen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 4.45 – Marketplace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94 4.46 – Rear Plaza - Republic of Beer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 4.47 – Current conditions beneath bridge 4.48 – Emily Street Market . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 . 5.1 - Community Food Assessment Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 7 Acknowledgments This creative project is a stepping-stone on a journey of life long learning. The research process has inspired interests in several subjects, some of which are branches of food and agriculture, but many reach beyond the scope of this project. I am grateful for my family and my friends – my companions on this discovery trail. This project was born out from my concern for our health and personal well-being, and the environments we live in. My education, while deeply intense and chaotic at times, has enriched my life and filled my mind with ideas I hope to share with you all. Thank you for your guidance and support throughout these three years - it all seemingly passed by in blink. I owe a great deal of gratitude to my advisors, Malcolm, Sean, and Vera, for your sincere enthusiasm for this project and your guidance, which steered the refinement of this project. I hope you all were able to add knowledge to your design and planning arsenals. Also, to the faculty of the Landscape Architecture department who showed me a different way to look at the world, and helped me realize skills I may not have discovered without your encouragement. Finally to my studio mates, whom I have shared this journey of synthesis and creativity. I wish our curiosities will continue our quest for knowledge and understanding, in an effort to become innovative leaders. 8 Project Inspiration “It’s bizarre that the produce manager is more important to my children’s health than the pediatrician.”1 - Meryl Streep The driving force behind this creative project is a belief that everyone on earth is born with the right to clean water and healthy food – essential elements of healthy lives. Over the past few years I have developed a passion, for sustainable food and sustainable agriculture. During studio projects and personal exploration, I have searched for a variety of methods to integrate food into designed landscapes, while generating identifiable food characteristics to influence food notoriety and awareness in neighborhoods, towns, and large cities. Michael Pollan’s (2006) book, The Omnivores Dilemma: A Natural history of four meals,2 was the catalyst for my sustainable food systems education. His research on industrial agriculture and American agri-business spurred many thoughts and concerns about my health and wellness, nutrition, and sparked a curiosity about the origins of the ingredients on my dinner plate. Pollan made me question whether the people controlling the products (not only food) I buy have my best interest in mind; and as I began to shape my focus and interpretation of food in America, high fructose corn syrup, largescale livestock feedlots, and corn, became common discussion topics among friends and relatives. Inspiration led me to seek opinions and information from researchers, academics, columnists, farmers, and film documentaries, and so on. 9 Our food system has changed more in the past 50 years than in the previous 10,000.3 Food is a multi-trillion dollar enterprise controlled by a handful of large corporations from production to waste management.4 The lack of transparency between us and our food system has removed the connection between us and our food origins – at least we can never be certain how our food is grown unless we shake our farmer’s hand. The conventional food system in the United States has depleted the taste buds of Americans. The variety of food offered in supermarkets today lacks diversity – at least I have noticed discrepancy in the variety of peppers I can buy at a farmers market opposed to a supermarket. The agri-business model does not seem to provide the exploration of heirloom varities of food, which make eating and cooking so engaging. The agribusiness model is high on capital, chemicals, and machines, and does not produce anything that tastes good.5 The conventional food system has also increased the carbon footprint of American dinner plates, as bites of food forked into mouths across the United States travel an average of 1,500 miles.6 Today it takes between seven and ten calories of fossil fuel energy to deliver one calorie of food energy to an American plate.7 However, the system has created a supply sufficient to meet the demand of American citizens, along with the desire for inexpensive products. “Inexpensive food has become the norm. In North America approximately 11% of disposable income is spent on food compared to + 20 % in Europe. Increasingly however, we recognize this has exacted other less obvious costs such as environmental degradation, loss of bio-diversity, loss of farms, farmland and farmers, and exploitation of labor and resources, as well as compromised health and nutrition, food safety and security. Thus the destructive ecological, social and economic consequences and limitations of the modern global agri-food system are becoming 10 increasingly evident and problematic.”8 It seems unlikely that people, cities, and private food retailers, will be able to operate on local food alone. A supermarket manager is not going to stop stocking bananas because they travel thousands of miles from Ecuador – and nor should they. Bananas are quite popular in America, so unless we begin to grow food indoors as witnessed in parts of the world, we will continue to ship our food from remote areas of Earth providing us with the diverse delicacies and taste palettes. These comments are only my perception of the shortcomings of the conventional food system, but regardless of how generic food is, we are privileged people to be able to experience a variety of foods from around the globe. There are nutritional needs and tastes imports offer that may not be available locally: avocados, citrus fruits, grains, or livestock. People enjoy these foods and need their nutritional value; but lets urge local food systems to support these needs before providing jet-lagging options. Finally, planners, designers, and city officials have an opportunity to influence decision-making and policies to promote local food production and distribution – establishing a sustainable food system locally, which has the potential to influence economic growth and viable cities and regions. 9 11 Endnotes 1 Food Lion, http://www.andywardrep.com/FoodLion(AndyWardrep).pdf, (Retrieved May 4, 2009). 2 Michael Pollan, The Omnivore’s Dilemma: a natural history of four meals, (New York: Penguin Group, Inc., 2006). 3 Food Inc., motion picture, directed by Robert Kenner (2008; Robert Kenner Studio, Magnolia Pictures). 4 Olga Bonfiglio, “Delicious in Detriot,” Planning, August/September 2009, 37. 5 Dan Barber, “How I fell in love with a fish,” TedTalks, 2010. 6 Center for Urban Education about Sustainable Agriculture, “Issues in a nutshell: How far does your food travel to get to your plate?” http:// www.cuesa.org/sustainable_ag/issues/foodtravel.php, (2006). 7 Michael Pollan, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, 183. 8 Kent Mullinix, et. al, “Agricultural Urbanism and Municipal Supported Agriculture: A New Food System Path for Sustainable Cities,” (Kwantlen Polytechnic University: Surrey,BC, August 30, 2008), 5. 9 Bonfiglio, “Delicious in Detriot,” 37. 12 Project Introduction Youngstown, Ohio, has been faced with a phenomenon of a shrinking population since the 1960s. The city now faces and abundance of vacant homes and neighborhood lots, dilapidated industrial sites, and an overall lack of community identity. In 2005, the City of Youngstown produced the Youngstown 2010 Citywide Plan, which outlined the plans for Youngstown’s future as a smaller city - downsizing. A main goal for the plan was to green the city, and discover several methods to attain it. However, the plan did not recognize agriculture as a green revitalization method. This creative project will introduce and outline the methods necessary to become a sustainable food city. The planning and design of a food precinct presents Youngstown an alternative greening method that will revitalize the city with food and agriculture, while using food to instill a new city identity. This proposal will encourage Youngstown to embark on a quest toward becoming a sustainable food city, and will act as a model for cities in similar predicaments. A New Vision The Youngstown 2010 Citywide Plan is a fresh new 21st Century vision for Youngstown addressing the city’s status as a small city. The plan estimates a population stability around 80,000 residents, but other projections indicate Youngstown’s population falling to 54,000 by 2030.1 The plan states a desire to focus on new industries to define the regional economy. It plans for new land uses and initiatives to revitalize the city, and 13 address its vast amount of vacant land through green initiatives, including remediating industrial lands, adding greenspace, parkland, and open space. The Youngstown 2010 Citywide Plan does not acknowledge agriculture as a green opportunity. In fact, the future land use plan decreases the amount of agricultural land use as shown in the comparison of land use maps in Figures 1.1 and 1.2. Figure 1.1 - Land Use Map - hightlights current agricultural land use in Youngstown - Source: Youngstown 2010 Citywide Plan Youngstown shares its predicament with other industrial cities, such as Detroit. Deindustrialization bombarded both cities, as they were left with ruptured economies, high unemployment, and vacant land – only the scale of the effects of deindustrialization differentiates the relationship between Youngstown and Detroit. The Motor City is looking at 70,000 vacant lots, both industrial and residential, which equals to about 27 percent of the city’s 139 square miles.2 Based on Census 2000 data, shown in Figure 1.3, 14 Tod Children's HospitalStambaugh Golf Course Forum Health North Norman Johnson Park Anshe Emeth Cemetery Tod Homestead Cemetery North Side Swimming Pool nHarding Ellis Playground Harding Elementary Rayen Middle Mt. Hope Cemetery Crandall Park John White Park West End Park St. Elizabeth'sWick Park St. Peter & Paul Cemetery North Elementary P. Ross Berry Middle n Kochis Park Ursuline Victory Field MVSD Playground Borts Pool & Field East High Spring Common Choffin Career Center St. Michael Cemetery Calvary Cemetery Huxley Park nMary Haddow Elementary Oak Hill Cemetery Oakhill Renaissance Place Schenley Park nWest Elementary Jackson Cemetery Lincoln Park/Oakland Field Chaney High Hillman Park Oak-Ken Playground n Williamson Elementary Gibson Field Eagle Heights Sports Complex City of Youngstown, Ohio Future Land Use N. Kennedy Alcoholic Clinic Volney Rogers Middle Cardinal MooneyHomestead Park Kirkmere Parkn Legend Municipal Boundary Wilson Middle Fosterville Park Taft Elementary nTaft Park Kirkmere Elementary Sheridan Park Barrett Playground Pemberton/Donnell Park Ipe Field µ 0 0.25 0.5 1 Buckeye Plat Field e b ∆ a ∆ Ò µ ≤ n n n Æ v c ∆ Airport Cemetery City Park Correctional Facility Fire Station Multi-Family Residential Business CBD Future High School Hospital Facility Industrial Light Hubbard Arterial Industrial Heavy Prepared by: The Center for Urban and Regional Studies Youngstown State University Source: Mahoning County Enterprise GIS Files, Youngstown 2010 1.5.05 Lynn Playground P C Bunn Elementary n Institutional Transportation/Utilities U.S. Highway Recreation/Open Space State Highway Agriculture Extension of Hillman St. Bancroft Park Business Industrial 'Green' Library Limited Access Highway Youngstown Christian Mill Creek Park Single, Two and Three Family Residential Future Elementary School Future Middle School Highway Ramp 1.5 Miles Lake or River Stream Amtrak Station WRTA Station Park Road Future Planned Residential Priority Business Cemetery Road Smoky Hollow Planned Residential Railroad YMHA Hope VI Planned Residential Mahoning River Riparian Zone Mahoning River Corridor of Opportunity Crab Creek Corridor Figure 1.2 - Future Land Use Map - reveals decrease of agricultural land. Source: Youngstown 2010 Citywide Plan unemployment in Youngstown was 11.3% and 20.4% of the population was living below the poverty level, revealing the impact industry collapse had on these cities. With the help of non-profit organizations and active community members, Detroit is turning its dilapidated land into productive land through an urban garden movement. Many community groups and small organizations merged to form the Garden Resource Program Collaborative, which has helped establish 359 family, 170 community, and 40 school gardens throughout Detroit since 2003,3 within the 900 urban gardens of the nonprofit Detroit Agriculture Network.4 The collaborative has helped redevelop and stabilize neighborhoods as many gardens are connected to youth and community engagement programs. 15 16 Figure 1.3 - Census 2000 Data - Importatnt data are education level and household income, which encourage the introduction of low income-jobs. The economic initiatives of local and state government are pushing the development of urban agriculture, as they have recognized the economic opportunity connected to urban agriculture. In 2008, the Michigan state government established the Garden for Growth Program, which provided residents opportunities to lease vacant land for fifty-dollars to implement a garden.5 While many non-profit organizations are involved in the Detroit gardens movement, John Hantz, a wealthy money manager with a net worth over 100-million dollars, has identified a food and agriculture market in Detroit, and has committed to building an urban farm expanding over 50 acres of East Detroit’s landscape.6 “Hantz thinks farming could do his city a lot of good: restore big chunks of tax-delinquent, resource-draining urban blight to pastoral productivity; provide decent jobs with benefits; supply local markets and restaurants with fresh produce; attract tourists from all over the world; and -- most important of all -- stimulate development around the edges as the local land market tilts from stultifying abundance to something more like scarcity and investors move in.”7 Hantz’s principles of profiting from urban agriculture have some community gardeners concerned of corporate takeover of their grassroots campaign for Detroit’s urban agriculture network. In the end however, Hantz strongly believes someone should pay taxes, and that a “land grab” won’t sufficiently restore Detroit’s economy. Hantz Farms will support the economy’s revitalization through farming for profit.8 Another project serving as a model is Toronto’s, The Stop Community Food Centre. It is representative of a food precinct and focuses on sustainable food initiatives. The non-profit organization, which started as a food bank thirty years ago,9 carries out its mission “to increase access to healthy food in a manner that maintains dignity, builds 17 community and challenges inequality,”10 through a diverse program including community kitchens, cooking classes, drop-in meals, a food bank, outdoor bake ovens, food markets, community advocacy.11 The Stop maintains 18,000 square feet of production area, which yields 4,000 pounds of fresh organic produce annually.12 The 10,000 square foot production area includes a year-round greenhouse at the Green Barn, in addition to a community kitchen and classrooms for food education for adults and youth.13 The Green Barn also has a compost demonstration project to inform the community of the importance for waste recovery, recycling food and organic waste, and the potential to create organic fertilizer. It is worth emphasizing The Stop’s commitment to sustainable food systems education, and its commitment to educational activities for adults and youth: cooking workshops, planning/growing workshops, food tastings, and market events. This document will later reveal how education is the backbone of a sustainable food system, ensuring an understanding to why The Stop’s programming heavily revolves around food education and community food advocacy. The concept and program of The Stop Community Food Centre and the on-theground food production initiatives in Detroit provide two strong examples to combine into new vision for Youngstown, Ohio. The movement in Detroit is being mimicked in other cities: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Milwaukee, New York, Portland, San Francisco, and Washington, D.C.14 The Stop is a type of organization with the potential to encourage food related business and food advocacy throughout cities. The strong support for the implementation of urban agriculture on vacant land provides evidence this industry is viable and growing; and along with a community food center, supports the opportunity for future food development and food planning to revitalize Youngstown, Ohio. 18 Project Scope The Youngstown 2010 Citywide Plan’s lack of acknowledgement of food and agriculture as a viable revitalization and greening approach provides an opportunity for this project introduce several food planning principles and design approaches Youngstown can use in an effort to become a sustainable food city. The main focus is to present a framework for establishing policy and planning initiatives to promote the vitality and implementation to support local food growth and urban agriculture. Urban agriculture initiatives take on many forms and are influenced by their ephemeral appearance and people-centered focus.15 This project will introduce the design concept of a food precinct, a place influenced by the elements of a sustainable food system - a vibrant food center with a marketplace where, food growth, food processing, food storage, food festivals, and food education would be a central focus for adults and youth alike. The enthusiasm of the people involved in implementing this project, and the diversity of people this project would effect, will drive this project’s success. This project is named after Grow Youngstown, a local organization supporting local agriculture in Youngstown. Its will and support for a sustainable local food system will further empower its members to realize the potential of Youngstown becoming a sustainable food city. Grow Youngstown, “envisions Youngstown as a model for food security that employs urban agriculture, waste reduction, and resource re-use. Food security is defined as giving populations both economic and physical access to a supply of food, sufficient in both quality and quantity, at all times, to all social levels and incomes.”16 With the leadership of Grow Youngstown, the city will be a center of local and direct 19 markets, small plot agricultural production and processing, and meaningful work opportunities. “This return to our agricultural heritage as a means of strengthening our health and economic security will create opportunities for people of many generations, organizations, and cultures to build relationships and care for the environment.”17 This project will produce a vision to repurpose former industrial land into a vibrant downtown community food center, and present a conceptual plan for a network of food precincts. Food projects have the power to bring people together and stimulate community, while connecting people with their environment.18 Food will alleviate many of the problems facing Youngstown, Ohio, by reactivating vacant land, creating economic drivers inspiring a new regional economy full of food related jobs, promoting food education, and encouraging Youngstown to discover its food security and a new identity as a sustainable food city. Project Goals • Create a citywide framework introducing steps Youngstown can take to integrate food and agriculture within the fabric of the city o Present potential places for food growth o Create conceptual food models for: House lots Blocks Neighborhoods Streetscapes • Plan and Design a food precinct o Locate food hub & satellite/neighborhood precincts o Site Design of Food Hub Instill the elements of the food system diagram 20 Present creative methods to design with food/plant material Assumptions In order for this project to take place certain assumptions must be made to enable this project to occur: • The local government, city officials, and Youngstown residents accept the vision of this proposal and the suggested impact food will have on the city’s future. • This project will operate under the indication noted by several sources that urban agriculture is a successful environmentally sensitive design solution, which establishes community and economic growth. • Laws will allow liabilities for project implementation. • All land rights and ownership will be settled. • Any brownfield sites being considered for agriculture plots will be remediated by the city or the developer of the food precinct. • All agricultural practices proposed by this report are organic. Delimitations In order for this project to take place, certain limits must be set: • The project focuses on a framework and planning initiatives for the city to implement to promote a sustainable food system. Therefore, the Grow Youngstown food hub design will be conceptual in nature in order to present the possibilities and potentials of the proposed site. The designer acknowledges several opportunities and solutions could be proposed, but the design process and multiple levels of schematic discovery are secondary to the big picture for 21 Youngstown and its food future. • Research will not concentrate on physical food growing practices in order to focus on the opportunities for food to mitigate the factors of shrinking city. • This project will mention and discuss certain soil remediation practices, but will not analyze their scientific processes or dictate the most suitable approach for Grow Youngstown. • The project will not discuss cost variance between mass-produced food and organic food consumers face when shopping for food. • Research will not calculate the ecological footprint, carbon savings, or money saved related to a sustainable food system. • The project suggests entrepreneurial opportunities for Grow Youngstown, but will not specify, management structures or business models for farmers or community organizations to operate Grow Youngstown. • Project will not deliver a plant schedule or discuss processes undertaken to plant or specify crops. Moving Forward The scope of the project has been set and the time has come for Youngstown to realize the potential for food to influence its future. The remainder of the project will present a framework designed to provide impetus to change the way cities think about food and the potential food has to change the lives of citizens. Urban food production has been identified for its beneficial impacts on people’s quality of life,19 and ability to create a sense of local distinction, no matter how ordinary is unique and has value.20 This notion 22 suggests this project design has the potential to significantly change the individual lives of Youngstown citizens. 23 ENDNOTES 1 City of Youngstown, Ohio, Youngstown 2010 Citywide Plan, 2005, 7. 2 Olga Bonfiglio, “Delicious in Detroit,” Planning, American Planning Association, August/September 2009, 75, 9, 33. 3 Bonfiglio, Planning, 34. 4 David Whitford, “Farming: One way to try and save Detroit,” Fortune, January, 18, 2010, 161, 1, 83. 5 Bonfiglio, Planning, 37. 6 Whitford, Fortune, 79. 7 Ibid. 8 Whitford, Fortune, 83. 9 The Stop Community Food Centre, http://www.thestop.org/faq, retrieved February 10, 2010. 10 The Stop Community Food Centre, http://www.thestop.org/misson, retrieved February 10, 2010. 11 The Stop Community Food Centre, http://www.thestop.org, retrieved February 10, 2010. 12 The Stop Community Food Centre, http://www.thestop.org/community-gardens, retrieved February 10, 2010. 13 The Stop Community Food Centre, http://www.thestop.org/green-barn, retrieved February 10, 2010. 14 Bonfiglio, Planning, 37. 15 Andre Viljoen, ed., Continuous Productive Urban Landscapes, Architectural Press: Oxford, UK, 2005, 220. 16 World Health Organization, Food and Health in Europe: A New basis for action, Who Regional Publications, European Series 96, 155. 17 Grow Youngstown, http://www.growyoungstown.org/index.html, 2006. 18 Viljoen, CPULs, 220. 24 19 Viljoen, CPULs, 57. 20 Tara Garnett, Growing Food in Cities, National Food Alliance, London, 1996. 25 Blast Furnaces to Food Precincts An understanding of Youngstown’s history For over a century, the skyline of Youngstown, Ohio, was dominated by soot emitting smoke stacks. The discovery of coal in 1844, lit the torch for industrialization,1 and Youngstown began its growth toward being the third largest steel producer in the United States by the early 1900s.2 Beginning in 1846, eleven blast furnaces were built, along with their ensuing distinction of the vernacular landscape along the Mahoning River. Coal, iron ore, wood, and the Mahoning River distinguished much of Youngstown’s history,3 as the consumption of natural resources impacted the development of next century. By the end of the 19th Century several companies including, Brier Hill Steel Company, Republic Steel Corporation, Youngstown Sheet and Tube, and Carnegie Steel (became U.S. Steel Corporation in 1901), had active steel mills or planned to build mills in the Youngstown area. These initiatives solidified steel production as the region’s identifying element, cultural connection between people, and the main economic driver. By 1918, Youngstown was second Figure 2.1 - Republic of Steel Mills, 1939 Source: Steel Town U.S.A. to Pittsburgh as the largest steel-producing areas in the United States.4 Despite the constant filth and poor environmental quality, smoke and soot on the horizon and on dusty windowpanes reminded people of ongoing production and revenue flow.5 The steel industry was Youngstown’s identity, and the unifying element 26 between neighbors.6 People, families, and businesses were directly linked to the success of the steel industry – a mill worker – a baker who sold workers pastries and coffee each morning – a banker who deposited and cashed checks of workers paid by the steel companies. By 1930, Youngstown grew to a population of 170,000 as people emigrated from around the world for their piece of the ample supply of employment. Thousands of workers, including a growing influx of Eastern European immigrants,7 flocked to Youngstown and gave steel companies the physical Figure 2.2 - Youngstown grows with Industry Source: Steel Town U.S.A. labor to manufacture products around the clock. In 1920, more than 25 percent of Youngstown’s population was foreign-born, one of the highest such percentages in the United States.8 The mills and steelworkers brought pride and definition to the community – hard workers. However, despite strong community ties to local industry, work could not sew the rifts of cultural and racial tension between the rich and poor, and the blacks, the whites and foreign immigrants. The result led to riots and fighting, and steelworker strikes for better pay, better working conditions, and better treatment from wealthy mills owners. People came together at work, but often lived apart, causing more ethnic breakdown – Europeans here, African Americans there, the poor on this side of town, and wealthy further away from the smoke and soot. Youngstown flourished from the success of the steel industry throughout the better half of the twentieth century (1900-1960) – tagged “Steel Town U.S.A.”9 The city enjoyed one of the highest family income rates in the region.10 In 1929, the city relished a high percentage (48%) of homeownership.11 Downtown businesses felt the flow of revenue from the steel Figure 2.3 - “Bringing home the Bacon” Source: Youngstown Vindicator, Sept 4. 1927 27 companies. People filled the downtown area, enjoying movie theaters, art museums, department stores, and restaurants. 12 The future looked promising for the vibrant city. The Great Depression hit Youngstown in 1931. It was one American industrial city hit the hardest – the unemployment rate was 23.1 percent, second only to Denver.13 The city was able to hold onto its steady population, and got out of the depression with the demand of steel production rising for the support of World War II. Over the course of mid-20th Century steel mills and labor unions would battle each other over wages and quality working conditions. Workers frequently went on strike and would riot for their rights.14 This time period also witnessed the beginning of the decline of Youngstown’s population. The 1940s, and 1960s, in America was the beginning of the suburban migration, which left much of Youngstown with its immigrant population, as many whites with their higher paying jobs moved to suburban settings, expanding the metropolitan region.15 The suburban migration began to segregate Youngstown neighborhoods and began creating racial lines, which increased tension at work and on Youngstown’s streets with increasing violence. The final blow in Youngstown’s catastrophic fall from industrial dominance came on September 19, 1977: “Black Monday.”16 Youngstown Steel and Tube announced the closing of one its major mills. Over the next five years, Republic Steel and U.S. Steel followed suit and closed their steel mills. An estimated 50,000 jobs were lost. The working class of Youngstown lost approximately $1.3 billion in wages.17 Following the loss of jobs, people soon fled the region. The exodus of the steel industry led to rapid decline of Youngstown’s economy, landscape, and its identity. The collapse of the steel industry left Youngstown without a plan or a vision to deal with the consequences. The city had been operating on a comprehensive citywide plan (1951, 1974 update) inspired by potential growth and development.18 Youngstown 28 operated on its 1974 comprehensive plan and watched the city fall into disorder. Remnants of deindustrialization littered the Youngstown landscape: empty mills, unused railroads, vacant buildings, vacant residential lots, and abandoned housing. There was a consistent decline in population, and a steady increase in crime. Moreover, the city was left with a dilapidated economy and no plan to regenerate or transform its misfortune to stabilize its local assets and population. People left to find a new life elsewhere, and left Youngstown to fend for itself and to hang onto its memory of the past, while it tried to discover a new identity. “Youngstown clearly has a problem with memory. While the history of work and community here represents important events in the development of unions and responses to deindustrialization, people here have not learned how to remember the past as at once meaningful and painful, a source of pride and a tool for understanding community problems, the basis for identity, and the starting place for building a new identity.”19 During this struggle the city has been recognized for its battle with violence. Following a 1963, news article on local mob violence, Youngstown lost its prominent Steel Town USA title, and became “Crime Town, USA.”20 “Few, if any, cities have experienced the highs of being one Figure 2.4 - Steeltown Lockdown - article focused on rising crime rates in Youngstown. Source: Steel Town U.S.A. of the largest steel producing city in the United States at one time with census data showing its highest per capita family income locally (adjusted for inflation) in 1960, to losing 40,000 manufacturing jobs overnight and garnering national attention for crime and corruption.”21 During the 1990s, Youngstown built four prisons and became the 29 unofficial ‘prison capital’ of Ohio. This presents a distinct need to create a new face for Youngstown and to establish a positive element for citizens to identify with, as steel once did decades ago. The population decline continued into the 1990s, and early 2000s. The once vibrant steel city has witnessed its population decline of nearly 16% each of the last four decades, as shown in figure 2.5. Youngstown did not support the housing boom in the late 20th Century. The departing population did not encourage development, as each new dwelling equaled a vacancy somewhere else in the city.22 Therefore, city is dealing with an extraordinary amount of vacancies (see vacant land use map of Figure 2.18) in the form of residential, commercial, and industrial land uses, which has created to different faces of the community. First, is the face of a well-kept public facade trying to maintain the image of the city. Second, is the face of deindustrialization and its remnants of disinvestment and abandonment, which Youngstown is trying to relieve. A graphic comparison of these conditions is represented in the images in figures 2.6 - 2.17, on page 32. Figure 2.5 - Population chart - Youngstown endured a 16% average loss of population over four decades. Source: Youngstown 2010 Citywide Plan 30 The Two Faces of Youngstown, Ohio Maintaining an Image Products of Deindustrialization Figure 2.6 - View entering downtown on Market St. Figure 2.12 - Vacant land south end of downtown. Figure 2.7 - House near North Heights Figure 2.8 - Downtown Parking Figure 2.9 - Federal Street Downtown Figure 2.10 - Storefront on Federal Street Figure 2.11 - Updated housing east of Downtown Figure 2.13 - Abandoned dwelling Figure 2.14 - Vacant buildings on east side Figure 2.15 - Abandonned unused railroad bridge Figure 2.16 - Abandoned business on southside Figure 2.17 - Vacant residential lot 31 Stambaugh Golf Course Norman Johnson Park Anshe Emeth Cemetery Tod Homestead Cemetery N.S. Pool Harding Ellis Playground Mt. Hope Cemetery Tod Park Crandall Park MacDonnell Playground Mackey Fowler Property Children's Park Property West End Park Evans Field John White Park Truscon Playground Property Wick Park Sts. Peter & Paul Cemetery John Chase Park Kochis Park MVSD Playground Oak Park Property Borts Pool & Field Victory Field Spring Common St. Michael Cemetery Huxley Park Calvary Cemetery Oak Hill Cemetery Schenley Park Jackson Cemetery Lincoln Park/Oakland Field Hillman Park Stambaugh Field Oak-Ken Playground South Side Park Gibson Field City of Youngstown, Ohio Vacant Land Sports Complex Legend Homestead Park Municipal Boundary Fosterville Park 711 Connector Limited Access Highway Highway Ramp Taft Park Kirkmere Park Sheridan Park Barrett Playground U.S. Highway Pemberton/Donnell Park Ipe Field Buckeye Plat Field State Highway Railroad Lake or River µ 0 0.25 0.5 1 Stream Cemetery Bancroft Park 1.5 Miles Prepared by: The Center for Urban and Regional Studies Youngstown State University Source: Mahoning County Enterprise GIS Files, Youngstown Parcel Survey 1.19.05 Lynn Playground City Park Mill Creek Park Vacant Parcel Figure 2.18 - Vacant Land Use Map - Source: Youngstown 2010 Citywide Plan Preparing for Food Planning Youngstown’s history presents an understanding of its current situation, especially its difficulty maintaining its population, its jobs, and its identity. Reactivating vacant land and making it a producatve and viable part of the community will help Youngstown reshape the future of its economy, and its identity and overall character. The remainder of this report will present a planning and design framework intended for Youngstown and cities in similar situations to reshape their futures by focusing on becoming a sustainable food city. 32 Endnotes 1 Sherry Lee Linkon and John Russo, Steeltown U.S.A.: work and memory in Youngstown, University Press of Kansas, 2002, 18. 2 City of Youngstown, Ohio, Youngstown 2010 Citywide Plan, 2005, 7. 3 Linkon and Russo, Steeltown U.S.A., 19. 4 Steven High, Industrial Sunset: The Making of North Americas Rust Belt, 1969- 1984, University of Toronto Press, 44. 5 Linkon and Russo, Steeltown U.S.A., 76. 6 Linkon and Russo, Steeltown U.S.A., 69. 7 Ibid. 8 Ibid. 9 Linkon and Russo, Steeltown U.S.A., 69. 10 City of Youngstown, Ohio, Youngstown 2010, 15. 11 Linkon and Russo, Steeltown U.S.A., 38. 12 Ibid. 13 Ibid. 14 Linkon and Russo, Steeltown U.S.A., 40. 15 Linkon and Russo, Steeltown U.S.A., 41. 16 Linkon and Russo, Steeltown U.S.A., 48. 17 Linkon and Russo, Steeltown U.S.A., 47. 18 City of Youngstown, Youngstown 2010, 14. 19 Linkon and Russo, Steeltown U.S.A., 245. 20 Linkon and Russo, Steeltown U.S.A., 191. 21 City of Youngstown, Youngstown 2010, 15. 22 City of Youngstown, Youngstown 2010, 31. 33 SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEM A breakdown and adaptation for Youngstown,Ohio A sustainable food system is a symbiotic relationship between food, land, and people, and the efficiency and sustainability of the systems making food consumption possible. The elements of a food system that establish initiatives are listed below. This list is a glance at the many adaptations Youngstown will consider when evaluating its sustainable food system. This is not a binding set of rules, rather guidelines or long-term goals set forth to improve the city’s food security, food sovereignty, and a identity of the community. A sustainable food system: 1 • Is energy and fuel-efficient. • Is a powerful economic generator for farmers, whole communities and regions • Celebrates cultural diversity in food. • Uses efficient infrastructure for water, energy, and waste. • Balances food imports with local capacity. • Adopts climatically appropriate agricultural practices and crop choices. • Works towards organic farming and preserves biodiversity in agro-ecosystems. • Recycles nutrients recycles of organic waste into fertile soil. • Maximizes urban agriculture and protects peri-urban (urban edge) and rural farmland. • Ensures that local food processing facilities are available to independent farmers and processors. • Sees food as an experience where people are connected to each other and the land 34 from which their food was grown. • Has a strong educational focus to create awareness of food issues and to build skill around food growing, processing, and preparation. • Maximizes the economic, social and environmental performance and value of the food sector at the regional scale Figure 3.1 - Sustainable Food System Diagram - Source: HB Lanarc The sustainable food system diagram (figure 3.1) presents the relationship of each food system element and how they rely on one another. The elements presented in the diagram, in combination with the education of people, allow the food system to operate harmoniously. Creation of a sustainable regional food system requires the participation of government, community organizations, planners, developers, landscape architects, foodoriented business, and academics.2 Moreover, planners and designers will be integral players in the development of sustainable food systems. Their expertise in land planning and community development will engage and educate the public on the importance of living locally and the prominent role food will play in a city’s prosperity. Professionals will contribute to sustainable regional food systems, creating vibrant livable spaces that 35 integrate food into the community fabric, property development, and public spaces. Sustainable Food City3 A sustainable food city exercises practices engaging the sustainable food system elements. A sustainable food city will also integrate food into the urban environment, creating physical access to food through pedestrian market access to residents, along with education opportunities to impart knowledge of the food system elements. It is important for cities to analyze its efficacy within each element of the food system to properly plan for development to tighten sustainable food system. In a sustainable food city, people have a personal connection with food and it is celebrated through it availability in corner stores, restaurants, festivals, and urban/peri-urban agriculture. Youngstown’s Future - Adapting to sustainable food system principles Studies by HB Lanarc, de la Salle, and Barrett outline steps a city must take to become a sustainable food city. The following section adopts these steps and outlines a framework Youngstown can adopt toward becoming a sustainable food city. Production Youngstown will change the face of its landscape by incorporating a hierarchy of edible plant material – distinctly communicating its effort to become a city focused on food growth and on the food security of its citizens. The following typology and definitions infer places and the variety of existing scales at which food can be produced. • Fields – like traditional agriculture, row crops, wheat grasses can be grown in massive plots of land and harvested mechanically – Northeast Youngstown had agricultural land use areas pre-Youngstown 2010. Youngstown should consider maintaining active agriculture land. 36 • Orchards & Vineyards– Any fruit-bearing tree with access to full sunlight will deliver food. Many varieties of apple, persimmon, pear, and cherry trees, along with walnuts and chestnuts, are suitable to grow in the Northeast Ohio climate. • Yards – the front and backyard can have an impact on residents’ kitchens if they choose to dig up their yards and build an edible landscape – a food oasis that will support their daily needs. Figure 3.2 - Backyard/Kitchen Garden Tomatoes, kale, lettuce, carrots, potatoes, corn, squash, peppers, and beets, are commonly found in edible (kitchen) gardens – and if local laws enable people to keep chickens, home growers will benefit from eggs and fecal fertilizer for crops. Homes Figure 3.3 - Kitchen Garden - due to lack of open space residents can utilize their backyards for food growth tight on space may opt to build a kitchen garden in their back yards, such as in Figures 3.2 and 3.3. • Streets – A hierarchy of edible plant material will set a sustainable food city apart from others. Pedestrian oriented streets lined with fruit trees and planting Figure 3.4 - Theoretical street section presents a hierarchy of edible plant material and multi-modal transportation. 37 beds with tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and berries, will highlight and display Youngstown’s commitment to the local food system. Streets will incorporate stormwater management principles where applicable, collecting water for irrigation practices. Streets should also provide interpretive signage to food precincts and other public areas where food is apart of an interactive landscape. These principles may not be considered on every street in the Youngstown, but perhaps the main arteries leading to and from food precincts will establish a sense of place as streets focus on food and agriculture. • Parks and Plazas – Will carry similar characteristics of streets, but do not have to solely consist of edible plant material. The unique character of parks and plazas typically consist of large canopy trees, but a shift to fruit and nut trees for new plantings will activate food Figure 3.5: Grape Pergola in a park Source: HB Lanarc productivity in parks. Edible plant material should be combined with traditional herbaceous plant material in planting beds. Educational signage accompanying edible plant material, will allow the public to interpret and further investigate the city’s commitment to food growth. The signs should even teach and promote people to pick the produce off the plant when ripe! • Shared land – Neighbors sharing space between residential lots or vacant neighborhood areas can build community gardens. If enough space exist residents may be able to build a small neighborhood farm. These areas provide a common space for people to grow food and Figure 3.6 - Shared Land can be transformed into a community garden or even a small neighborhood farm develop community ties. 38 • Vacant land – The opportunities for vacant land to thrive as a growing medium and rehabilitating an area are endless. Vacant land can be transformed into productive land, and provides people with food, turns brownfields into green space, and potentially reactivates untaxable land if the productive land is turned into profit. Vacant land may need soil remediation, or protective membranes to protect roots from contamination. Phyto-remediation presents and opportunity to create bio-fuels upon the harvesting of plant material, prior to implementing agriculture. If remediation is not possible, food growth may not be an option. However, wood harvesting, establishing orchards and forests to produce trees, can supplement a need for wood to produce energy, paper, and timber, and does not require soil remediation. Vacant buildings and structures could be explored for potential indoor/hydroponic growing – think of an oversized greenhouse – retrofitted glass roofs and indoor irrigation, which is rising innovation to bring more production opportunities to the urban environment. • Raised Beds – Boxed planting beds specifically focused on food production. Their size varies, but commonly wide enough for the users with the shortest reach to be able to access the middle of the bed. Raised beds are diverse in that they can exist in various environments. They are excellent answers to sites with contaminated soil. • Walls, Fences, Pergolas, and Trellises –Walls and fences shape space, provide barriers and protection, and also the opportunities for vines to grow. Technology exists where plant trays can be installed in walls, which opens the opportunity for strawberries, lettuce, and other shallow rooted plants to explore new lives on vertical planes. Figure 3.7 - Growing in Small Urban Spaces 39 • Alleys and Balconies – Pots, planter boxes, raised beds, and many of the characteristics of walls and fences can be fused into allies and balconies. Restaurants could potential utilize allies to harvest salad mixes from raised beds. • Food Precinct – Food hubs and satellite precincts are distinguished by productive land - not to be confused with an urban farm because precincts are defined by their incorporation of each food system element with processing, storage, and food retail space– an aesthetically functioning productive landscape, more of which will be explained later in this document. • Greenhouses and Hoophouses – These structures are found at residences, food precincts, urban farms, and local nurseries. They offer an extended growing season because of their ability to retain heat and control climate. • Institutions – Government buildings, churches, and schools are excellent grounds for production and food related events. These places have the power to put food on display, because of the nature of the business of these places – people come and go frequently. Therefore, food will get plenty of face time, and the influence from these symbolic places in cities may encourage citizens to grow at home, or inquire about garden education. Figure 3.8 - Urban Agriculture demostration garden at City Hall, Vancouver, BC. Processing / Transportation & Storage The goal of a sustainable food city is to grow, store, distribute, sell and enjoy 100% of what is grown locally before supplementing diets with imported foods, or exporting any surplus products. Establishing city-centralized warehousing and processing centers will help food businesses become more environmentally responsible. For 40 instance, produce will likely use less plastic wrap, Styrofoam packaging, and refrigeration time, if it is grown, transported, sold and eaten locally. Therefore, a sustainable food city will set policies addressing connections and transit methods between city retailers and local farms in order to tighten the connection between food travel and the length of time food takes to get from its origin to dinner plates. A sustainable food city will provide sustainable approach for farmers to locally process and store goods. A local cattle farmer can pay a local slaughterhouse, perhaps located at a food precinct, to kill, cut, and process, his livestock. Grains and vegetables can be processed preserved, and then stored, at a place like a food precinct. Farmers are provided a local access to processing and a districution center at a food precinct, perhaps a cost saving strategy. The localized food chain keeps profits and money exchanges between local food system elements, boosting the local economy. A sustainable food city will analyze the current state of food transit with a broad scope addressing food miles and the quantity of imports. Production decisions can be made based on these estimates, which will create a diverse growing season, offering more local products, and adjusting import/export products according to harvest calculations. Therefore, if Youngstown happens to have a record tomato harvest, it is possible for many citizens to receive canned tomatoes from a local processor for winter storage; a time where tomatoes would likely be bought from a grocer, but produced in the Southern hemisphere, or thousands of miles away elsewhere. Distribution and Food Sales A sustainable food city analyzes the number of retail outlets and the relationship of those places to its citizens and the multiple modes of transportation which people can reach food sources. A sustainable food city seeks options to get people out of vehicles with alternative methods of transit to food retailer similar to those in the list below– albeit 41 walking, biking, or rollerblades, etc. Therefore, the City of Youngstown will give people the option to walk, bike, ride the bus, use light rail, and cars to culturally appropriate food outlets. Getting to food outlets seems pretty straightforward, unless any of the presented transit modes are absent from the city, and perhaps walking may be the lone option. Ideally, people will be within a ten-minute walk to one of the following types of food retail: Types of Food Retail15 • Supermarket • Neighborhood grocer • Farmers’ Market • Food Precinct • Farm Stand • Restaurant • Street Vender • Food Bank • Community Kitchen • Cultural Festival Figure 3.9 - The Food Oasis/Food Desert diagram explores physical access to food. Because the food system strives to increase food security, this model will create increase neighborhood food outlets to consumers seeking healthy, cultural, and non-emergency food sources. Availability is the essence of access, and then creating safe infrastructure to get people to food places will render success. 42 Ten-minutes is quite different from one person to the next, but 800 meters is roughly a ten-minute walk.16 The following list,17 highlights transit qualities Youngstown will consider when planning for safe access to food: • Healthy roads – multi-modal roadways safe for cars and bicycles: limited pot holes, clear signage and directional markings to guide travelers • Wide sidewalks – set back from streets make comfortable pedestrian passage along corridors lined with edible plants and food features – Youngstown sidewalks could be safer by encouraging set backs – and applying plant material to beautify streets – edibles where appropriate. • Distinct pedestrian crossings – signage, disparity of materials, at grade crosswalks are visual indicators to motorists when entering pedestrian oriented areas There is an important connection between localized food access and neighborhood and regional growth patterns. Initiatives should drive protection of agricultural land, promote dense development, while increasing access to food. • Greenways – extended trailways intended for bicycles, runners, and walkers, cutting through greenspace and natural landscapes – potential for greenway development along Mahoning River and extinct rail beds. A greenway could become a food delivery/distribution route. For example, a ‘bare-necessities’ food retail business could deliver milk, eggs, bread, fruit and vegetables, to neighborhood by cyclist via a bike trail/greenway/bike lanes. • Bike lanes – create bike lanes on city roads with lines and symbols to solidify territory for cyclists – there are no existing bike lanes in Youngstown. • Bus stops – increase access to public transit and Youngstown’s bus system (WRTA), with more routes and boarding zones to get those without vehicles to daily destinations. • Clear signage – legible and communicative signage will make all travelers aware of directions to food destinations and rights of way along streets – Youngstown has a chance to identify neighborhoods and unify the city with distinct signage characteristic of town and identity as a sustainable food city. Consumption and Celebration18 Food is often a centerpiece of daily interaction: a coffee break, lunch with colleagues, a dinner date with a spouse, and family reunions. Food is engaging – fragrant – artful – inspiring sensations and emotions – triggering memories and inspiration. 43 Food can be glorified in Youngstown in many ways: festivals, cook-off competitions, farmers markets, and community picnics, all of which could take place at a neighborhood food precinct or a downtown food hub. In a sustainable food city people of all cultures have opportunities to present the nuances of their taste buds expanding Figure 3.10 - Food Celebration- Food on display on sidewalk at restaurant, edible plant material and signage the palettes of their neighbors, while tying the community together, developing new bonds and a new food identity. Waste Recovery Waste Recovery closes the loop of a sustainable food system – and often the most overlooked piece of the puzzle. Approximately 24% of America’s waste stream comes from organic waste – table scraps, coffee grinds, peels, stems, and even yard waste.19 Food itself makes up 12.7 percent of American waste,20 and to quantify this further, 32 million tons. Only three percent of this extraordinary number is recycled.21 Therefore, about 31 million pounds of food waste is dumped in landfills annually, and under anaerobic conditions, contributes to methane production, which is a 21 times more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Landfills are Figure 3.11 - United States waste breakdown - Source: E.P.A. the largest producer of methane in the United States, accounting for 34 percent of all methane emissions.22 Understanding the contribution food waste has to the degradation of the environment and our atmosphere is an indicator cities need to analyze their own waste streams and alternative methods to 44 handle food waste in order to reduce the impact on landfill and trash incinerators. Below is a list of options available to Youngstown to address its waste. This list is a combination of traditional and sustainable practices. The goal is to discover the most sustainable method of food waste disposal. Youngstown will recognize a significant savings in landfill space and economic savings, while enhancing food production, by adhering to the following waste recovery principles. Waste Disposal Options23 • Household garbage • Landfill • Incineration • Home compost • Biochar • Municipal collection • Municipal composting program • Anaerobic digestion = biogas energy • Anaerobic digestion = compost • Livestock feed • Municipal collection – Toronto is a prominent example with a citywide Green Bin program that leads to a seven month composting process, which returns organic fertilizer to the city free of charge, while drawing biogas energy from anaerobic digesters during the seven month composting process.24 • Home Composting – support kitchen garden • Neighborhood Collection – begin neighborhood composting to support community gardens, or neighborhood food precinct Importance of Waste Recovery and Recycling • Decreases landfill and transportation costs25 • Reduces landfill capacity & pollution run off into local water sources26 45 • Decreases greenhouse fas emissions27 • Decreases use for petroleum based fertilizers – promotes healthier soils with organic fertilizer/compost28 • Creates growing medium for local agriculture29 • Promotes anaerobic digestions and the production of biogas30 Toronto’s Municipal Green Bin Program Toronto conducts a progressive waste-recycling program, called the Green Bin Program, to collect organic waste to divert it from landfills and incinerators. 31 It started the Green Bin program because of the high price of solid waste transportation costs it was incurring shipping its waste to Michigan, due to a local landfill closure in 2002.32 Toronto realized opportunities to reduce its waste and energy output, save municipal funds, and to create a product (biogas energy and organic fertilizer) for to reuse for the benefit of Torontonians. San Francisco, CA, and Ottawa, ON, are two other notable cities who have adopted similar organic recycling programs, and serve as excellent precedents for Youngstown as it explores its potential to recycle food and organic wastes. Figure 3.12 - Toronto Municipal Compost Process The Green Bin Program is a cyclical system that collects food and yard waste, as seen in the diagram in Figure 3.12, and is digested with the end product resulting in rich compost and organic fertilizer to return to its citizens at no cost. This waste collection program is promoting recycling and composting, and reduces landfill expansion. Also, by taking a broad view of the green bin program, Toronto is promoting outdoor activity 46 and engagement with the residential landscape, and in relation to this project – growing food and kitchen gardens. Therefore, Youngstown could essentially adopt a ‘Green Bin’ program similar to the one in Toronto, which could produce some of the fertilizer needs for homeowners, community gardeners, and the proposed food precincts across the city, while promoting active outdoor engagement and healthy lives. Education Education is the centerpiece of the sustainable food system diagram. A food system cannot flourish without the understanding of all participants of each food system element. The following list33 presents methods by which Youngstown will be able to influence food system education to its citizens: • Schools – have the power of influencing the habits of young minds, which can trickle into homes as children could have the urge to impress new found food system knowledge to parents • Local Government – displays of community gardens on government property, such as that in Vancouver, BC, can demonstrate local support for starting home gardens and influencing the spread of a local food culture • Farmers – excellent resources for learning the intricacies of growing food, they even have great recipe ideas. Inquirers can find farmers at farmers markets where one will garner invaluable face-to-face time with their food producer, processor, transporter, and retailer. • Community Gardens – knowledgeable neighbors will likely spread food knowledge to other local growers and those interested in becoming apart of the community. Community gardens hold events throughout the growing season to inspire and attract new gardeners and share methods and ideas with neighboring gardeners. • Food Precincts – A food precinct incorporates each element of a food system on its grounds. It provides cooking classes, composting classes and informational signage at compost areas. A regular farmers’ market will provide opportunity to meet farmers’. • Neighbors – Spread the love of food. If one person learns a new recipe, then he or she should teach two other people the recipe and ask them to teach two others each. 47 • Community Kitchens & Food Banks – cooking classes and how to shop for healthy food. • Grocers – will help read labeling and understand the retail interface so that citizens can easily locate the food necessary to support their families. • Chefs and Restaurants – spread rich, cultural cuisine throughout the city – knowing how to pair food with beverage can be a challenge at home, but listening to a chef or the wait staff will increase knowledge of complimentary foods and beverages. Sustainable Food Systems Response This chapter presented the components of a sustainable food system and how Youngstown can become a sustainable food city. It will have to evaluate its food system and adopt appropriate methods it feels will strengthen citizens’ food access, food health, and perhaps discover ways to create jobs and income through the food industry. The city has the opportunity for food to rule the landscape and the economy. Food lots equal food jobs. The remainder of this document will present one method to do so, with the conceptual planning of Grow Youngstown, a network of food precinct and the design of the network’s food hub. 48 Endnotes 1 HB Lanarc, Agricultural Urbanism, http://www.agriculturalurbanism.com/surfs.php, (Vancouver, BC, 2009). 2 Ibid. 3 Janine de la Salle and Kyle Barrett, “Sustainable Food Cities: A handbook for planners designers and government,” (HB Lanarc: Vancouver, BC, 2009), 6. 12 HB Lanarc, Agricultural Urbanism, http://www.agriculturalurbanism.com, (Vancouver, BC, 2009). 13 Janine de la Salle and Kyle Barrett, “Sustainable Food Cities: A handbook for planners designers and government,” (HB Lanarc: Vancouver, BC, 2009). 14 de la Salle and Barrett, “Sustainable Food Cities,” 11. 15 de la Salle and Barrett, “Sustainable Food Cities,” 25. 16 Ibid. 17 Ibid. 18 de la Salle and Barrett, “Sustainable Food Cities,” 12. 19 Gwedolyn Bounds, “New, Easy-to-use composters,” http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704107204574471330808326 984.html, October 13, 2009. 20 EPA, “Basic information about food waste – organic materials,” http://www.epa.gov/osw/conserve/materials/organics/food/fd-basic.htm, 2009. 21 Ibid. 22 Ibid. 23 de la Salle and Barrett, “Sustainable Food Cities,” 13. 24 City of Toronto, “City of Toronto: Solid Waste Management – Green Bin Program,” Retrieved July 30, 2009 from http://www.toronto.ca/greenbin/index.htm. Toronto, ON, 2009. 49 25 de la Salle and Barrett, “Sustainable Food Cities,” 27. 26 Ibid.. 27 Ibid. 28 Alexa Kielty, “San Francisco’s Food Composting Program,”,Department of the Environment, San Francisco, CA, Mid-Atlantic Organics Summit, November 30, 2006, 43, 29 Ibid. 30 Ibid. 31 City of Toronto, 2009. 32 Ibid. 33 de la Salle and Barrett, “Sustainable Food Cities,” 7. 50 Grow Youngstown Food Precinct Planning and Food Hub Design This chapter presents a written and illustrated description of the planning and design process for Grow Youngstown, an organization of food precincts. First, food precincts will be defined and outlined according to design principles, which will guide the program for a food hub. Second, a presentation of a conceptual plan for a network of food precincts throughout the city will demonstrate the positive impact a food precinct could have on the city and its neighborhoods. Finally, the design for the downtown food hub will be presented through detailed images and detail description, providing a clear representation of a visitor’s experience. Food Precinct1 Food precincts are places visibly focused on food and agriculture,2 and influenced by the principles of sustainable food systems. The programmatic elements of a food precinct interact harmoniously, promoting sustainable agriculture, organic food, local food promotion and sales, while introducing Figure 4.1 - Food Precinct network conceptual diagram food education for local citizens, including food safety, cooking, canning, composting, and even learning to grow food in a home garden. As seen in the conceptual diagram in Figure 4.1, food precincts are often apart of a greater network of food facilities, with centrally located hub surrounded by satellite (neighborhood) precincts. 51 Food precincts mix agriculture and food system functions, including, farming, distribution, processing, eating, and education.3 A neighborhood precinct supports the food hub and nearby residents, by offering food retail, an area for crop growth, education (cooking, gardening, food preserving) and food related community events. The satellites have the potential to be themed, or to obtain distinct purposes in relation to the needs of the entire precinct network. For example, in Youngstown, a particular precinct may be focused on raising livestock, as opposed to one across town, which may feature orchards. The products of these precincts are sold in the neighborhood, but are also harvested, processed, and marketed at the food hub’s marketplace or farmers market. A food precinct enables local food and farmers to connect to communities efficiently and economically.4 Food precincts are different from a shopping district because they feature on site food production. Production and manufacturing are absent in a retail district.5 A food precinct contains eateries and incorporates all the food that is produced on site into its menu, and then replenishes the system with unused food and organic waste – separating a food precinct from outside food entities. This model will provide an opportunity for growers to sell their food to the precinct marketplace. The precinct can take the position of the major supplier of local food – giving people who choose not to grow food at home or at a community garden, physical access to similar products their neighbors may grow. Benefits of the food precinct and food hub include:6 • Increasing essential food and agriculture infrastructure such as processing and sales capacity to the small to medium farm economy. • Centralized distribution point(s) that enable purchasing by wholesalers, grocery stores, and restaurants from multiple farms and producers. • Increased community access to experiencing and purchasing local foods. • Community, professional, and academic learning opportunities focused on food and sustainability. 52 • A tangible, visible connection between eaters and growers. • A conscious planning and design approach to sustainable food cities. • Job creation in the local food economy. • Become the new face of downtown Youngstown. Design and Technical Considerations7 Food precincts have specific structural needs, including space for crop growth and public gatherings and events. The programmatic elements will guide this project from site analysis to site planning, and through site design – incorporating the elements of the list below into the design program. Many of these elements require the design and development of a building and interior space, which is greater than the scope of this project. Therefore, many of these elements, if not directly detailed into the final design solution, will be discussed during the conceptual design phase. A food precinct is organized by the following programmatic elements, all of which will be considered while designing Youngstown’s food precinct: • Productive agriculture landscape – growing food that is visible to the public – promoting it as a design element to spread food growth throughout a city • Waste collection and recycling – visible organic waste collection area that will be converted into compost to be reused by food precinct to grow annual crops • Commercial scale storage space and processing/packaging facilities • Permanent farmers market – indoor and outdoor space for the promotion, education, and sales for local farm products • Event space – an area for food festivals and farmers markets are important – this is where creativity will flourish incorporating interactive spaces indoors and outdoor, perhaps melding the two areas together • Restaurant or Café – celebrate food and eat food hand picked from the precinct itself • Office space – precinct related business needs space to operate – perhaps on a second floor separate from commerce and precinct interaction 53 • Education – a classroom in the form of a kitchen, greenhouse, composting bin, and interpretive signage will promote community knowledge on growing, processing, and preparing local food. • Kitchen & Classroom – potential connection to restaurant & café to share a kitchen with an education space • Loading/Delivery zones – accessible to market for sales and processing center • Sun and Water –agriculture plots should be exposed to the sky while spigots and hose access should be nearby to cool crops when the sun intensifies • Water source – access to public water main or natural water body • Rainwater harvesting – use visible cisterns for collection to supply precinct with irrigation water • Building potential – reuse existing or vacant buildings/land • Strive for energy efficiency –passive solar heating, sustainable energy, • Recycled materials – from bath tubs for raised farm beds to retired railroad ties for walkways – utilizing local materials from local sites will cut down GHG and present opportunities to relate to local architecture themes Management Considerations 8 A food precinct will operate in a variety of ways. Satellite/neighborhood precincts and other related businesses will operate under the governance of the food hub. There are many types of people from chefs, farmers, and community leaders, who may participate in a food precinct as a form of employment, or as a volunteer, depending upon the structure of a particular location. The following list provides insight as to how a food precinct could be managed and who might be a part of these alliances. • Non-profit business – recommended choice to ensure focus and application of local food initiatives – better chance of success when if food precinct is a business model • Social enterprise – for profit business venture with social and environmental purposes driving business decisions • Local government • Neighborhood precincts run by a citizen volunteer groups 54 • Farmers – who or desire promoting their crops at a local central hub • Food processors – opportunity for new business at precinct • Packaging businesses • Chefs and restaurant owners – who desire access to local food sources • Food retailers – who desire to purchase/sell local food in their stores • School board – the connection between the food precinct and youth • Local food bank • Consumers These lists, especially the design considerations, will drive the focus for the design of the food hub; the design will be presented later in the chapter. Before discussing design details, the next few sections will discuss and analyze the selection of food precinct sites, and present a conceptual plan for a Grow Youngstown: a network of food precincts revolving around the food hub as conveyed by the plan in Figure 4.2. Food Hub The Grow Youngstown food hub is the place where the majority of food commerce and business will occur within the Grow Youngstown network. Grow Youngstown operations and governance occurs at the food hub. Figure 4.2, on page 56, reveals the centralized location site chosen in downtown Youngstown. One that is equally accessible to citizens, and obtains certain characteristics supporting site selection. These include, ample vacant land for potential food production, existing buildings for potential reuse, public visibility, a government presence, and support, and water access. The proposed site, shown in Figure 4.3, on page 57, is on the Mahoning River and adjacent to the Market Street bridge. City Hall and various government buildings lie north near the edge of the site – an important measure to establish government or mayoral support for food a local food movement. The site offers premium visibility for 55 m n m n Harding Elementary Hayes Middle m n Odyssey: School of Possibilities P. Ross Berry Middle m n Food Hub m n m n St. Patrick’s m n East High Williamson Elementary Youngstown City School District Volney Rogers Middle Alpha: School of Excellence for Boys m n m n Cardinal Mooney Kirkmere Elementary m n µ 0 m n Chaney High Athena: School of Excellence for Girls m n Choffin Career Center West Elementary m n m n m n n North Elementary m m n Ursuline 0.25 0.5 1 1.5 Miles Taft Elementary Legend n m m n m n High School Junior High School Elementary School Prepared by: The Center for Urban and Regional Studies Youngstown State University Source: Mahoning County Enterprise GIS Files, Yng. Board of Education 11.16.07 Figure 4.2 - Grow Youngstown Network - Satellite precincts radiate around the downtown food hub. m Plan n Map Source: Youngstown 2010 Citywide a food precinct, and the promotion of a budding food culture in downtown Youngstown. This location on the river also promotes green space – an essential city element which downtown Youngstown lacks. The food hub will act as a downtown urban park, but one dominated by the presence of food. People will be able to visit and relax as if strolling through a traditional urban park or plaza. Visitors will benefit through the interaction with edible plant material, educational signage interpreting food agricultural practices, recipes, compost, and other information. Downtown restaurants and Youngstown State students will benefit from the short walk (see Figure 4.4 on page 57) to direct market access to food, potential jobs, and social events. Also, local citizens and daily business transplants will be enticed to visit the food hub by the intense agricultural display and the bustling nature of the marketplace 56 Stambaugh Field Hillman Park Falls Ave. Logan Ave. Bryson St. Woodland Ave. Albert St. Andrews Ave. Willow St. Valley Dr. Wick Ave. t. wS Himrod Ave. d. Prospect St. eR Hine Cir. t. Pola nd Ave . on s Gib Fountain Sq. Oak St. Lane Ave. Rayen Ave. Sackville St. Penn Ave. Se rvic Rice Ave. ad o Me St. dS South Ave. ve. Mchenry St. Oak Park Property Emerald St. t. ut S Wa tt d. Ct. tS eA Elk St. eR . de ral Se rvic St Fe . Valley Dr. Ca rlto nS t. Ad am sS t. Wil lar Co dS urt t. St. Wo o Wa ln Food Hub ilt on Wa ln t. nS St. ion mp E. t. Ch a t. Fro nt t. F St. ree ma n ily S ut S nS t. State St. Lansing Ave. t. mp io sS St. Ha z Em ma d. Rd Fruit St. ice . St Murdock St. gS Ch a St. rke Falls Ave. Se rvic Star St. Verona Ave. Scott St. Lane Ave. Sp rin sS t. t. St. Ma Hughes St. erv t. lz. Ph elp dS me rce Ha m Rid g Crab Creek W. S eR ity P Av e. Co m el Ch e stn ut St. Smith St. ral Randall Ave. Bryson St. E. ers Elm Parkwood Ave. Kensington Ave. Fifth Ave. Florencedale Ave. Elm St. Ohio Ave. Ohio Ave. t. Watt S Foster St. e. t. Lakewood Ave. Ridge Ave. Oak Hill Ave. Kist Pl. Woodland Ave. New Court St. Werner St. Wallace St. Plum St. Joseph St. Edwards St. Ridge Ave. Oak Hill Cemetery Thorn St. Glenwood Ave. Park Hill Dr. Dr. Glacier Dr. view Hawthorne St. gS Un iv Bo ard Petrie St. Alice St. Irving Pl. Price Ave. . r Hts Gla cie Mill Creek Park ed e Pl. Ave. Glaci er Fairview Rd. Hawthorne St. Av eR d. St. Wo o n Dutto Glacier Rd. Granite St. Mercer St. Lake Glacier ter erv ic St. Bridge St. Whitney Ave. Whitney Ave. Glacier Ave. Halls Heights Ave. Milton Ave. Pl. t. Wilkinson Ave. ard Cu s dS Youngstown State University oln eS Prepared by: The Center for Urban and Regional Studies Youngstown State University Source: Mahoning County Enterprise GIS Files, YSU, City of Youngstown 1.29.08 Pe psi High St. Bernard St. ton Lin c W. F Mahoning Ave. Overland Ave. Laird Ave. Evanston Ave. Lakeview Ave. North West Ave. Steel St. Lakeview Ave. . Dr ng Sp rin Mcguffey Rd. St. Bank ier c Gla 0.25 Miles Arli Pik 0.125 . 0 Grant St. Bo un Linden Ave. Madison Ave. Downtown Business District Spring Common Dennison Tod Ave. Orange Ave. Mill Creek Ca µ Lincoln Ave. Scott St. Or ch Marshall St. Mill Creek Park E. Custer Ave. Scott St. Mahoning River lvary Dr Water . Mill Creek Park Park or Other Greenspace Rd. Price lvd Building Footprint Arlington St. rB nio Troy Ave. Railroad . Ju Revised Boundary g Secondary Road in State Highway Mayfield Ave. Av e Manning Ave. Weaver Rd. 1st St. rK Limited Access Highway U.S. Highway e th 5 Minute3rd Walk St. from St. Elizabeth Highway Ramp en Salt Springs Rd. 5 Minute Walk from YSU Oakwood Ave. 2nd St. Lu Silliman St. Bridge tin ar M St. Elizabeth Campus Overlook Ave. Griffith St. . YSU Campus Oneta St. Ra y Baldwin St. St. St George St. Olive St. Indiana Ave. St. an rm . St u Th ble ar Crescent St. Pennsylvania Ave. M Madison Ave. Park Ave. Elm . Dr . Youngstown-YSU Ave. Florence Joint Commission District Midland Ave. 5 Minute Walk from Ave. Manhattan YSU and St.RicElizabeth hla nd Av Legend-Map 7 Ave. Wellington e. Strausbaugh Ave. Illinois Ave. Ph elp er st ve cA Hayman St. Kochis Park Zents Ave. Woodbine Ave. Wick Park Caroline St. Park Ave. Foster St. a Lil am Te Hartzell Ave. Broadway Ave. Michigan Ave. Fle m r. t. St. Hanley Ave. Arrow St. Parmalee Ave. Belmont Ave. . St. e Av sD C ter Bissell Ave. Ford Ave. nd rk Wo Sin Thornton Ave. Fairgreen Ave. N. Heights Ave. Broadway Harlem St. John Chase Park Tacoma Ave. Thornton Ave. Lexington Ave. Burnett St. la . Rowland St. Lora Ave. Broadway Ave. Evans Field Lexington Ave. Norwood Ave. Lora Ave. Emerson Pl. Oxford Ave. North Ave. ak O e Av io Oh ly ing Fairmont Ave. Norwood Ave. North Ave. Wirt St. n . St Foster St. Fairgreen Ave. . St . so r ffe Je er e ss Be St. r me t. rS ia e Av io r pe Su Delaware Ave. Griffith St. nd in rg Vi hla . St ca Clyde St. g Hi . St av W ne Se Worthington St. on Mackey Fowler Property Covington St. ft Cli . St d ar rv Ha St. n to ns Fu Juanita Ave. Figure 4.3 -Aerial Photo of proposed food hub. Source: Google Earth. Shehy St. Ro s eS W t. ils on Av e. Figure 4.4 - Pedestrian Shed - Downtown inhabitants will have a short walk to food precinct. YSU student will walk approximately 6-8 minutes to reach Grow Youngstown. Map Source: Youngstown State University 57 and shops. Youngstown State University could supply its dining services with food from Grow Youngstown. A relationship between the university and Grow Youngstown could inspire culinary arts and sustainable agriculture curriculums. The food hub exists as the pulse of Youngstown food culture, and will strive to promote and food related sales, event, or food related activity supporting Youngstown to become a sustainable food city. Satellite/Neighborhood Branches Satellite branches are food precincts located within city neighborhood surrounding the food hub. They can be schools, churches, institutions, community gardens, urban farms, or a local grocer, as long as food production occurs on site. Satellites support the food hub in its efforts to promote locally food and help carry out Grow Youngstown’s initiatives. Satellites have educational functions to teach people how to garden, cook, and preserve food. Food grown at a satellite location can be bought and sold on site, or be transported to the food hub to be sold downtown. Satellites operate under the umbrella of Grow Youngstown and its philosophy, but may in fact govern its own location at will. They have the freedom to have food festivals, classes, or garden parties, for its own neighborhood without coordinating with the food hub. As previously presented in Figure 4.2, this project suggests Youngstown schools can be viable satellites. Schools have an inherent education base, which could start food education for youth. Schools are embedded in neighborhoods and offer users local access to a community gardens, food education for students and adults, establishing an interface for students to learn about food through crop care. The food students cultivate can be incorporated into healthy lunch programs. The influence of food in schools will theoretically percolate into the homes, as children will introduce the presence of food in the neighborhood to their parents, which will spark community involvement. 58 Planning Response The proposed Youngstown Food Precinct Network focuses on using schools as satellites to support the food hub. The satellite networks are less evolved than the food hub, but each grew out of the opportunity to produce food and the embeddedness of educational opportunities, which are the essential elements for a food precinct to exist. There are many other suitable candidates in churches, parks, and businesses, which are able to meet this criteria and desire to be apart of the food precinct network. Youngstown’s food precinct network is proposed comprising of only schools as satellites, because schools provided the greatest potential to support the needs and principles of a food precinct. Schools present benefits for satellite food precincts because there have established population and community through families. The presence of education is strong in school, which, recalling the sustainable food system diagram, is the foundation of a sustainable food system. In the future, planners might discover alternative opportunities and additions to the network through organizations willing to promote Youngstown’s local food movement. 59 Design Discussion Food Hub: Inventory and Analysis The following commentary will present an inventory of the current site conditions for the proposed food hub. An analysis of the conditions will be made with consideration for design opportunities and constraints, while beginning to visualize how programmatic elements will be organized to create a vibrant food hub and downtown commercial location. The downtown location yields great visibility for the food hub. Visibility will be important for Youngstown to change their image to a sustainable food city. Consistent visualization of food establishes its presence and a local food culture will gradually develop - made possible through educational initiatives, business participation, and active participation Figure 4.5 - Context Diagram - the relationships between the food hub and the downtown districts influences the prosperity of Grow Youngstown from citizens. Nonetheless, the proposed site for the Grow Youngstown offers strong connections to the surrounding downtown context shown in Figure 4.5, and is easily accessible for Youngstown citizens reach with its location nearby several major downtown gateways. Gateways The entry experience into Grow Youngstown should hold great presence, and travelers should recognize where they are based on the site’s food theme. The Market 60 Figure 4.6 - Site Gateways Street Bridge will introduce people to Grow Youngstown traveling north/south. (See Figure 4.6 to locate the gateways.) Driving into the site on the Market Street Bridge visitors will immediately recognize the Wean United steel fabrication facility, shown in Figures 4.7 and 4.8. It is an incredible structure with much to offer a food precinct. The massive structure is a combination of large warehouse sized buildings once used to Figure 4.7- Wean United - view driving into site toward downtown on Market Street Bridge from South Figure 4.8 - Wean United - view driving into site from downtown at traffic light at north end of bridge 61 fabricate steel rolls and other steel products. This building will serve as the heartbeat of Grow Youngstown. However, the bridge is a dominant aspect of this landscape. It divides the site creating two distinct feelings. The barren, overgrown, desolate, eastern half; and the industrial western half, empty in many regards, but are shaped and characterized by the Wean United facilities. From the ground perspective on site, the bridge as an overhead plane could be overwhelming to visitors. Furthermore, the scene beneath the bridge and along the edges of Emily Street are overgrown and unattractive, an effort will need to be made to make this road and the surrounding environment an attractive and cohesive design transition (See Figure 4.9 to get a feeling for the environment beneath the bridge). An effort to create an attractive element directly beneath the bridge may create a more comfortable pedestrian experience and transition. Figure 4.9 - Environment beneath Market Street Bridge Site Entrances There are few points of entry serving as transitions from the downtown core into the food hub. These could be used to establish an element of excitement for access to food and the Grow Youngstown. Refer to Figure 4.10 on the following page during the following commentary, which analyzes proposed points of entry: 1. Phelps St. – adjacent to Youngstown City Hall. This street could become an entry walk and is represented by the red arrows. Its current conditions are shown in Figures 4.11 and 4.12. Phelps Street is a directly connects Grow Youngstown to Youngstown State, which makes this entrance important, because of pedestrian traffic coming from the university district. 62 City Hall Figure 4.10 - Site Entrances and potential vehicular connections There is concern for truck accessibility to delivery facilities in the building. There will need to be ample space for small delivery truck access for food storage and farmers market ventures. There are a few ways to solve this dilemma, which are represented by the blue arrows in Figure 4.10. Figure 4.11- Phelps Street - Entry Conditions - gov’t parking Figure 4.12 - Phelps Street - Entry Conditions 63 a. Emily Street provides truck access by connecting to Hamilton Street, which parallels the north edge of the Wean United facility. b. Trucks can drive to the end of Emily Street, which is currently a dead end. This of the road could become an intersection of a street and a plaza. A truck could turn toward the buildings and deliver goods to a point in the buildings. c. Another option to provide truck access directly down Phelps Street and around to delivery areas, to relieve site pedestrians from automobile interaction. 2. Convention Center a. The convention center entry drive, shown in Figure 4.13, provides an opportunity to access the food hub. The parking lot could be shared by the two properties. The drive could be connected to a proposed road way that could connect to Emily Street, as represented by the black arrows in Figure 4.10. This gateway proposes a couple different opportunities: b. Convention center parking (purple box in Figure 4.10) lot could be shared with Grow Youngstown, also providing another gateway opportunity. c. If a proposed road connects the convention center parking lot and the Emily Street, the road could become the main entrance to the food precinct, leading to parking along an access road or a larger lot. Figure 4.13 - Road connection to Convention Center Lot 64 Wean United Facilities The steel fabrication structure consists of numerous large connected warehousetype buildings, which can be renovated for new uses. The buildings will provide ample space for food storage, shipping and receiving, processing facilities – a butcher, a baker, a fruit and vegetable cannery – indoor growing and hydroponic agriculture, and a marketplace for food shops, such as cafes, candy stores, restaurants, and an indoor food retail marketplace. The manner in which the interior spaces interact with the landscape is important to the design, which presents exciting opportunities during design exploration, as the functions of interior and exterior spaces will collide to transform the overgrown weedy landscape into a vibrant riverfront industrial public space similar to many public plazas and parks common to urban areas. Refer to Figure 4.16, on page 67, to understand the exact area of the Wean United being analyzed during the following commentary: • Building 1: The interior of this facility is impressive and it may have had some interaction and direct connection with freight trains, because an extinct railway is present on the ground shown in Figure 4.14. The interior details are quite unique and need to be preserved to relish the integrity and design beauty of the past (see Figure 4.15). The brick arches will preserve the building’s history with steel and the railroad to remind visitors of the past, as the site forges ahead with a new program and a new vision for Youngstown as a sustainable food city. Unlike the other buildings on site, Building 1 presents an opportunity to create a greenhouse Figure 4.14 - Rail running through Building 1 65 or hydroponic growing facility. Ceiling is quite high in and the roof could be converted to glass material. The architectural detailing of the interior is too unique to relinquish the use of the space as a storage/processing facility. • Building 2 & 3: These buildings were unable to be explored during site Figure 4.15 -Building 1 Interior - Large facility which may have been a shipping and receiving location - high ceilings and attractive architecture - potential to fit exterior with glass to promote transparency and sunlight for greenhouse conditions reconnaissance. They were locked and windows were far higher than the eye could see. However, potential program opportunities for Building 2 lie in office space for businesses, which would lease space from the precinct itself. Businesses will hold a relationship with the food precinct: restaurants, special food retailers, such as, candy stores or coffee shops, a butcher selling locally raise livestock, and so forth. However, the building is quite large and boasts opportunities for potential processing space, even a brewery, which gathers its hops harvested from on site and city agriculture plots. Its size may be suitable to carry fermentation tanks and brewing infrastructure to make beer from hops grown within the food precinct network. • Building 3 is currently an office for Youngstown Pipe Supply. The connection between 3&4 can be redesigned to become a grand entrance to the food hub. This linear building helps create a strong diagonal axis across the entire site. Building 3 has potential to become a place for food sales. Its location in relevance to 66 Figure 4.16 - Wean United Facility Diagram parking and a viable entrance on Phelps Street would give visitors the shortest walk to their vehicles or wherever they may be walking. • Building 4: It was immediate knowledge upon the discovery of the façade shown in Figure 4.17 that this building is suitable for shipping and receiving, which makes this building suitable for storage. The soaring structure could be adapted to handle an extensive amount of food storage - perishable and non perishable. Figure 4.17 - Building 4 appears most suitable to function as a storage facility with its shipping and delivery capabilities • Building 5: This building wedged in the middle of the complex was another space that was not explored during 67 site reconnaissance. However, this building might be an optimal location for processing facility. Many types of processing could occur here: the canning and preservation of produce grown on site or from surrounding neighborhood precincts, livestock butchering, canning nuts gathered from trees around the city. The processing facility will also package and ship precinct related goods purchased by local restaurants and grocers. It is important to understand the Grow Youngstown food hub as a community food center. Anyone in the community will be able to have their products processed in the hub’s facilities, regardless whether citizens are entrepreneurs or recreational food producers. • Building 6: Like Building 1, Building 6 has potential for multiple functions. The roof could be converted to a transparent surface to promote passive solar heating and potential for greenhouse produce or hydroponics. This space could be an place for food retail (see Figure 4.18). An open marketplace might benefit an allseason experience where visitors could stroll around to various vendors. Small restaurants and food retail business could sell food grown on site and at local neighborhood precincts, made by local businesses, or Youngstown citizens who chose to sell there surplus crops to the food precinct, or area farmers. Figure 4.18 - Building 6 is suitable for many functions with a delivery outlet and vast amount of space. The downside to the potential for a marketplace in this building is the relative distance it lies from parking facilities. Visitors would have to trek to buy food and 68 then haul is back to the parking lot. This goes against the logic behind planning parking in front of today’s supermarkets: parking is directly in front. Regardless of the final proposal, building 6 will interact with many adjacent spaces and their functions - potentially becoming the epicenter of the food precinct, because of its for consistent activity. One can envision a relationship between the marketplace and an event space, or a production zone between the building and the river. Conceptual design proposals will later reveal the best layout, program, and function between these buildings, their space, and the exterior environment. Figure 4.19 - Building 6 Entrance - door interfaces with exterior area and potential link to plaza/event space Vacant Land Much of the land surrounding the Wean United facility is vacant and overgrown, but has potential to be adapted for food production. The areas also have potential to be plazas, event spaces, places to eat, and demonstration areas. The site has full exposure to the sun, which aside from water and quality soil (discussed later), provides positive growing conditions. It is important to consider food celebration and eating. Event space and outdoor farmers’ market space provides an interface between people, local farmers, nutrition, and a variety of great tastes, drawing people to Grow Youngstown. The areas to the north and south of the Wean United facility are most suitable to Figure 4.20 - Overgrown land - This swath of land between the building facilities and the river provides many design opportunity to engage people, food, and cultural events 69 become plazas, because their relationship with the facility provides continual interaction between people and activity on the interior. This will promote an active dialogue between people, food, and Grow Youngstown. Railroad An interesting aspect and potential design feature to work with are the extinct rail lines on site. The 1910 panoramic photograph (see Figure 4.21) of the site reveals the numerous trains shipping freight to the site. East of the bridge, Republic Steel, a major steel presence in Youngstown, had numerous manufacturing facilities puffing smoke above the downtown skyline. A 1907 Sanborn Fire Insurance map in Figure 4.22, shows all the active railways during the height of the industrial era. It suggests the ghost of the previous rail system can be used to organize site circulation. Figure 4.21 - View of site in 1910, a particular look at the railroad and its integration with the site and factories Figure 4.22 - 1907 Sanborn map reveals old rail lines and factory building footprints. Each can be instituted design elements or organizing elements to the design for Grow Youngstown. 70 Topography With the exception of a few areas, the site topography, shown in Figure 4.23, represents a gradually sloping landscape from front street to the Mahoning River. A detention basin lies in the middle of the eastern side of the site. The surrounding chain link fence is a design constraint. For the sake of completing this project and to focus on food, it will be assumed that this area of the site will be properly dealt with to promote the completion of this project’s goals, shifting the purpose of the area elsewhere on site. The land generally appears to have been lying dormant of any specific use for years. The site contains piles of gravel, scrap metal from steel mill deconstruction, railroad ties, or generally invasive weedy plant species, or opportunistic trees. The current vegetation will have to be removed to create viable food production zones on site. Figure 4.23 - Site Topography Map - Source Mahoning County 71 Eradication will occur through non-chemical methods, such as tilling or removing the top layer of soil and vegetation, and replacing the excavated material with a rich growing medium. Soils Although previously delimited in the introductory chapter, soil remediation and testing deserves reemphasis with a brief discussion on their purpose, because soil quality is a big concern for this site since it is a post-industrial landscape that will serve agricultural practices. Edible plant material needs healthy, clean, soil, not only for plants will grow properly, but also for the safety of human consumption. The industrial history of the site suggests the site’s soil composition might consist of heavy metal contaminants undesirable for food growth. Soil tests will prove what areas of the site will need soil rehabilitation, which could entail excavation, tilling and soil amendments, and possibly some type of membrane barrier to prohibit certain contaminants from interacting with growing mediums and plant roots. Phytoremediation is another employable remediation method. When site soils are ripe for growing, the site provides the opportunity for crops to flourish. There is ample space to introduce many plots and plants types, and the site’s orientation provides nearly full sun exposure to crops. The only hindrance is the Market Street Bridge on the east side crops in late afternoon, and the trees of the Mahoning River bank on the space between the Wean building and the river in the late afternoon. Otherwise, the vast area could pose a large crop yield for the food precinct to sell. 72 Transition to Design The analysis presented in this section has addressed the design opportunities and restraints. The site has essentially unlimited potential to serve a food precinct. The central location will serve Youngstown as its food hub, and main source for locally grown food. Daily traffic will come from the downtown workforce and those passing through downtown wanting to pause for food or groceries, and fun. Those who do not make it downtown will also have their taste of local food through Grow Youngstown sales to local food retailers and restaurants. As desire grows for local food in Youngstown, the more property the downtown food precinct will be able to garner to expand its production, which will serve the city by filling the voids of vacant land. 73 Food Hub Concept At the site scale, Grow Youngstown is an example of a sustainable food system and Youngstown’s greater food system. It demonstrates the cycle of food and its journey from its roots to the mouths of the hungry. Grow Youngstown is a vibrant organization, which will attract shoppers, farmers selling and processing their goods, hungry lunch time crowds of the downtown business district, and students from Youngstown State and surrounding public schools in search of food and agriculture knowledge. Organizational Concept The 1907 Sanborn fire insurance maps reveals the organizational concept for Grow Youngstown (See Figure 4.24). Site desire lines are conceived from Phelps Street’s connection to Youngstown State University, Market Street’s presence dividing the site, the strong linear orientation of the Grow Youngstown’s facility, and the old building footprint of the site of the current Covelli Convention Center. These desire lines establish axes connecting the site and the surrounding context and establishes an organizational concept for the program. Figure 4.24 - Design Organization is based off of desire lines of Phelps Street, Market Street, the strong diagonal linear forms of Wean United, and the site where Covelli Convention Center lies today. 74 Factory footprints of the once vibrant steel-manufacturing site present a dynamic opportunity to preserve the history of this site and trigger the memory of Youngstown’s population. The Sanborn maps show the locations of these extinct machines. These buildings will be brought back to life, perhaps not in similar form as their predecessors, but at a scale suitable for food production. These design elements, the hop house, composting area, edible entrance, hanging garden, chicken coop, and greenhouses, will reflect shades of Youngstown’s past by giving the site memory as it transforms into food precinct. People will learn of their significance throughout a walk about the educational trail, which will present these structures past and present. The forms of these structures may not take on the language evident of 1907; however, the historical influence will present a simple structure representing a reflection of the site’s layout one hundred years ago. Circulation Site circulation is influenced by the railroad lines, which once ran through the site in 1907. The Sanborn map reveals the routes freight cars transported goods to and from former steel mills. The railroad lines create paths and connections suitable for site visitors to experience Grow Youngstown, and provide staff proper access and direction in carrying out daily tasks throughout the site. Design Concept Grow Youngstown’s program layout, conceptual shown in Figure 4.25, revolves around how people will interact with the site, especially downtown inhabitants. For instance, Youngstown State University is less than a ten-minute walk to Grow Youngstown; and between YSU and Grow Youngstown lies the downtown business district, which immediately gives Grow Youngstown a base for food sales, especially if lunch is sold in its eateries. Therefore, with the lack of restaurants downtown, it is 75 Figure 4.25 - Site Concept Diagram - displays relationships between the food hub site and surrounding downtown context and among site program elements plausible that people would venture to Grow Youngstown to eat, influencing prosperity on the city’s new sustainable food hub. Grow Youngstown’s landscape will be viewed by people through an agricultural lens via the educational trail. However, daily interaction between people and food will commonly occur in the marketplace. The marketplace is particularly important because people will likely venture to Grow Youngstown to buy food or eat. Therefore, the location of restaurants and grocers is key to visitor interaction. Marketplaces and most restaurants are located nearest to Front Street with the idea that many people living and working in the downtown area will have nearest access to eateries and grocers. The lone exception to this is the Republic of Beer, which in the rear plaza, and is a destination 76 for beer lovers and those looking for quality nightlife. It is a place where people seek to enjoy the fruits of local agricultural and their hometown. People will frequent The Republic of Beer to enjoy local beer, and the pride of having a local brewer in town, which would likely be a draw for beer lovers, along with small scale cultural events. Other significant areas considered during conceptual design were large spaces for event and festival space. The event plaza and lawn share an interesting relationship in that they are divided by the Market Street bridge, but the periphery beneath the bridge provides easy pedestrian access and comfortable connection for a large food festival. The lawn and plaza will operate daily like typical civic spaces do, then combine during a seasonal beer festival, for example, creating lively multifunctional areas to accommodate many activities and uses. Productive spaces are located based on the exposure to sunlight, and the opportunity to reveal the footprints of the former industrial infrastructure with vertical growing structures. These space are interactive spaces, but people will be able to learn about their historical precedence and their new functions through interpretive signage. The Covelli Convention Center is a static element on site, which had to be dealt with in a way to understand that people visiting events there would have the opportunity to eat and celebrate at Grow Youngstown. These people will pass through the productive land before reaching places to eat and drink, which instills a particular sense of place and a theme of food and a focus on food production. 77 Master Plan The elements of a sustainable food system have driven this design for Grow Youngstown: production, processing, storage and transportation, marketing, eating and celebration, and waste recovery. The land use map in Figure 4.27, on page 79, represents how the site incorporates elements of a sustainable food system, which sets up an adaptation of the program derived from the aforementioned list of design and technical considerations on page 53. Also, as the design is discussed, refer to the master plan on page 80. The main food precinct facility, the renovated Wean United factory, hosts many functions of the overall operation. In fact, visitors will recognize each element of the sustainable food system within its walls. Not represented on the land use map, but equally important, are the multifunctional uses of these spaces and their alternative function as education and classroom spaces. Kitchens, processing facilities, and indoor growing areas are also suitable for community education, perhaps not for extended lectures, but certainly practical hands on education. The hydroponic growing facilities represented in Figure 4.30, on page 81, convert the interior shown in Figure 4.29 into a multilevel production machine. Grow Youngstown converts three open warehouses into growing facilities to supplement traditional agriculture models in the surrounding production areas: cover crop rows, orchards, greenhouses, pots, raised beds around plaza areas, and hanging (pergola) gardens. Visitors can experience much of the site on the educational trail, which is diagrammed above in Figure 4.26. The trail begins at the information center inside the facility’s main entrance on Phelps Figure 4.26 - Educational Trail Diagram 78 79 Market Livestock area Vertical Growing Cover Crops Orchards Storage Facility Processing Facilities Event Space/Eating Farmers Market Waste Recovery Office Space Figure 4.27 - Grow Youngstown land use map O N M P I C H A E T M A R K L P S P H E Map Key E A City Hall D D B E B Event Plaza V U C Festival Lawn D Apple Orchard T C E Restaurant O F Edible Entrance W G Covelli Convention Center S P H Hanging Garden M R I Chicken Coop N J Compost Area L K Greenhouses L Hop House Q M Friday Night Market M N Hydroponic Facility A O Marketplace P Republic of Beer H Q Learning Circle O R Republic Plaza N S Hydroponic Facility I G T Processing Facility N U Storage Facility V Delivery Area W Compost Area Figure 4.28 - Grow Youngstown Food Hub - Master Plan A K R F N U T W A L 80 V Master Plan E R D H GROW YOUNGSTOWN I J I G F R O N T S T R E E T Figure 4.29 - Existing conditions before hydroponics. Figure 4.30 - Hydroponics - Grow Youngstown will use the building for hydroponic food production 81 Street, which leads people into the plaza just outside the building, where people will immediately see demonstrations of food production, on the ground and vertically, as the southern façade of city hall is transformed into an edible wall. (See the before and after images of City Hall in Figures 4.31 and 4.32.) The plaza is a traditional urban square, where people can come to enjoy a moment alone beneath a tree or next to a water feature. It may become an refuge for site workers to ease their daily grind. The plaza’s existing conditions are shown in Figure 4.33 before its rendering in Figure 4.34, which presents the plaza during an event. A stage and ample hard surface create an area for people to enjoy a performance. The plaza could program annual, monthly, and weekly events, such as a seasonal beer festival highlighting Grow Youngstown’s own brewery, Republic of Beer, made from products grown on site. The plaza and the lawn area create a continuous festival space with many different scenes, sounds, and textures, including edible plant material and people harvesting food. These spaces will create an enjoyable experience for users coming to Youngstown’s festivals. Tents and vendors can set up within these spaces to sell food, artistry, and other products appropriate to festival themes to visitors and Youngstown visitors. The educational trail, which also provides small vehicle maintenance access for Grow Youngstown staff, continues through the site stopping at (in order of appearance) the edible entrance, hops house, chicken coop, hanging gardens, composting area, and greenhouses, which are among the aforementioned initiatives to create memory on site and the remembrance of the site’s industrial era. The structural forms of various buildings rely only on the footprint provided by the 1907 Sanborn Map, as imagery is available, but unattainable. Therefore, these structures each take on their own forms and aesthetics dictated by the designer, not necessarily indicative of its industrial ancestors. 82 83 Figure 4.31 -Plaza Present - Proposed location for plaza is currently a parking lot and a metal yard between City Hall (shown here) and the Wean United Facility 84 City Hall Vertical Garden Plaza for events and festivals Figure 4.32 - Entry Plaza Future between Grow Youngstown and City Hall, which becomes a demonstration for vertical farming Visible/Interactive Food Growing Downtown Youngstown 85 Figure.34 - Event Space - Plaza is adaptable for large events or everyday civic activity Figure 4.33 - Current view of proposed plaza space - Government Parking Lot Figure 4.35 - Current view of site entry from convention center parking lot edible entrance Figure 4.36 - Edible Entrance suitable for pedestrians and farmers market vehicles 86 The edible entrance forms the western gate to the site and takes on the footprint of its former steel factory. People will pass through a metal canopy similar to the form of the stage in the plaza. The presence of food growth is immediately apparent, as food is grown on the ground, in planters, pots, and climbing the support structure. Figures 4.35 and 4.36 reveal a dramatic change in the view as one enters this side of the site. The passage way will be wide enough to accommodate pickup trucks and cars to access Emily Street for the Friday night market, which will be discussed later in the proposal. The hop house is one structure remembering the many smoke stacks rising from its former building, shown in Figure 4.37. The hop house, shown in Figure 4.40, will host climbing vines rising up above the Market Street Bridge, producing some of the hops needed to make the Republic of Beer’s finest brews – Grow Youngstown’s own Figure 4.37 - Republic Steel - Arrow points of form of building the hop house emulates Source: http://freepages.history.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~classicpostcards/Parent%20Directory/usa/ohio/mahoning/mahoning.htm distinct product. At harvest time, staff will climb up inside the vine tower to hand pick hops, as shown in Figure 4.38. Not only does the hop house provide visual interest to 87 Figure 4.38 - Current view toward downtown in background Figure 4.39 - Staff worker picking hops from inside the hop house’s vertical tower Hop House Festival Lawn Downtown Figure 4.40 - Proposed Hop House stands adjacent to the festival lawn 88 the landscape, but also a proper sense of history by sharing similar form of the factory structure that once stood in its place. The chicken coop will operate as a humane and organic producer of chickens. Chickens will roam freely within the coop, unless otherwise able to roam the site to pick bugs from crop and worms and bugs from the soil. An egg cracking demonstration will show visitors the difference between an egg from a free range organically raised Figure 4.41 - Chicken Factory - Grow Youngstown will allow chickens to roam freely, as opposed to confinement, limited space, and unhealthy living conditions chicken experience above. Source: HB Lanarc bird, and constrained by the suffocating conditions of a chicken sweat shop, as in Figure 4.41. Grow Youngstown will promote healthy lifestyles for its livestock. The hanging garden provides a destination for those seeking a quieter space to interact with food and its aesthetic nature. As Figure 4.42 shows, both hanging and static potted plant material adorns the large pergola. The hanging garden is a comfortable place, easy on the minds of visitors and staff alike, as orchard trees, and edible and floral plant material surround the area. The composting area on the east side of the site will collect organic waste produced from on-site maintenance, such as weeds, tree limbs, and rotten crops. This large demonstration area contains large waste piles, and reveals a step by step process of composting. Visitors will participate in turning over compost piles to properly aerate and promote organic decomposition. Signage and personal guidance from staff will provide an understanding of the importance of waste recovery and the stress food and organic 89 90 Figure 4.42 - Hanging Garden is a edible sanctuary where farmers and visitors can enjoy a tranquil setting Education Circle Cover Crops Raised Beds Figure 4.43 - Learning Circles provide lecture spaces for food and agriculture educations to teach visitors and local youth about food. waste have on landfills. This information and personal interaction with the composting process is intended to inspire a citywide movement, beginning at homes to encourage residents to grow a edible garden. The educational trail stops between the composting areas are nodes of production and agricultural learning. These learning circles, represented in Figure 4.43, will promote specific areas of understanding behind the science of growing food, how to grow food at home, and hands on learning experience of sewing a seed. After completing the outdoor tour at the west composting area, the agriculture experience continues into the main facility and through the hydroponic facilities, before coming to the end of the tour. A few important programmatic elements not noted by the master plan or land use plan are a food bank, community kitchen (shown in Figure 4.44), and education classrooms, which are a part of the main Figure 4.44 - Community Kitchen Source: HB Lanarc 91 facility. Office spaces are wedged into a section of the hydroponics facility, so Grow Youngstown can to manage on site and remote operations. This area will also provide related businesses, most notably restaurants and farmers, office space to manage their businesses. Site visitors will learn how food is prepared, preserved, and kept fresh before making its voyage to dinner plates at the storage and processing centers in the main facilities. This particular segment of the educational experience will provide a view of the food system few people get to witness. It is widely understood that conventional agricultural practices utilize numerous resources in fertilizers and pesticides to produce the vast amounts of food found in supermarkets. Grow Youngstown strives to create transparency between consumer and supplier, and will allow full disclosure of how it produces, processes, and stores food for its constituents. It will grow food organically, process food humanly and cleanly, and store food in a manner that will preserve its integrity and not diminish the quality of nutrition or taste - getting products to market, whether it is on site or to local grocers. The transparency of the educational trail will create a bond between people and the food they buy from Grow Youngstown’s marketplace, knowing local people have the utmost care for their products – providing quality food and prospering health. Grow Youngstown visitors will be able to take their new food knowledge to the Grow Youngstown marketplace, ask questions and create a relationship with their grocer. The marketplace will be laid out so people can meander through kiosks of produce as shown in Figure 4.45. They can stop to talk to a local farmer selling beef raised a local farm. A bakery will sell fresh pastries made of the berries grown in the berry patches behind the facility. The Republic of Beer Store will provide the Friday night medicine needed to wind down from a hectic week. One can take their six-pack to the back plaza, shown 92 Figure 4.45 - Marketplace hosts a wide variety of food sales of site products and those of local farmers and gardeners. in Figure 4.46, and enjoy it with family and friends, before they attend the Emily Street Market. The Emily Street Market opposes many traditional farmers market structures, as it operates on Friday evenings and advertised as a community event. The market is not only about food. Artisans are invited to sell their crafts, and musicians are welcome to sound their melodies to the crowds. This event is a new event inspiring new nightlife in downtown Youngstown. The Emily Street Market will see vendors set up their booths, tents or out of their rear ends of cars or pickup trucks, along the edge of Emily Street, beneath the Market Street Bridge. As seen in Figures 4.47 and 4.48, the design for this market transforms the feeling and presence beneath the bridge. The once suffocating and barren transition the bridge creates between both sides of the site, becomes a weekly social oasis by adorning the space with lights and a colorful ceiling with many light fixtures to address the need for a comfortable human experience to neutralize the unforgiving infrastructure above - inviting people into the vibrant space. 93 94 Figure 4.46 - Rear plaza is a connects people to the hydroponic house and the marketplace. On the way they can stop into the brew pub to sample the Republic of Beer. Figure 4.47 - Current Conditions beneath Market Street Bridge Figure 4.48 - The new look of the Emily Street Market - A Friday evening destination for good food, music, and art. 95 Design Summary The food hub is the epicenter, the heartbeat, of the food precinct network. Grow Youngstown’s design presents one scheme of a vision, which could render several possibilities. This plan is grounded by a foundation of the site’s industrial past, while a new future sprouts at the surface. The design reveals a place driven by the sustainable food system and successfully implementing the design consideration laid out earlier in the report. The elements driving the design and are embedded throughout the landscape in the form of growing structures, cover crops, and people places. The educational trail binds the site together by connecting a hierarchy of the production of fresh food to individual spaces for people to learn about the history of past industry and get glimpse of Youngstown’s bright sustainable food future. 96 Endnotes 1 Janine de la Salle and Kyle Barrett, “Sustainable Food Cities: A handbook for planners designers and government,” (HB Lanarc: Vancouver, BC, 2009), 16. 2 HB Lanarc, “Food Hubs & Precincts,” (Vancouver, BC, 2009), 1. 3 HB Lanarc, Agricultural Urbanism, http://www.agriculturalurbanism.com/food_precincts.php, (Vancouver, BC, 2009). 4 Ibid. 5 HB Lanarc, Agricultural Urbanism, http://www.agriculturalurbanism.com/facilities_activities.php, (Vancouver, BC, 2009). 6 HB Lanarc, “Food Hubs & Precincts,” 2. 7 de la Salle and Barrett, “Sustainable Food Cities,” 17. 8 de la Salle and Barrett, “Sustainable Food Cities,” 18. 97 A Look into the Future Conclusion and Recommendations Youngstown is the food city of the future – an exemplary model for not only shrinking cities, but also growing cities as they look to implement food solutions in planning to feed growing populations. This project sets the stage for Youngstown to mitigate the factors of a shrinking city, becoming a model for cities to invest in food as a catalyst for revitalization. Food production, preparation, and retail, reveal strength for reclaiming vacant land, making land productive, initiating employment opportunities, and renewing the city’s identity. Much like Detroit, Youngstown will no longer be recognized for the death of its industrial past or its high crime rate, but its budding food identity, which provides new industry to champion productive land and new employment opportunities. Entrepreneurship The designer believes food can become a major economic driver, or at least, a new business model for Youngstown; and intends for this project to inspire Grow Youngstown, the local organization, to take the reigns for the management of this project and lead Youngstown into its new future as a sustainable food city. The organization has a passion for local food and the potential to synergize the community by carrying out its mission “to create a healthy, socially just, economically viable and interdependent local food system.”1 The big picture of this management consideration is the opportunity for Grow Youngstown to become the face of the city, establishing a viable business at the 98 downtown food hub, where people will recognize its presence during daily commutes. The organization will have the knowledge to properly plan out satellite food precincts to support the production operations for Grow Youngstown. The more food the city can produce the greater its food sovereignty; thus, supporting a sustainable food network with strong local economic, social, and environmental ties. As entrepreneurs, Grow Youngstown may be able to influence many local grocers and farmers to conduct business with the hub, perhaps becoming a regional cooperative or its own CSA, selling shares to local residents with a return of fresh food year round. There are many options in terms of a management structure. John Hantz, the Detriot urban farm visionary, has a good point in that the land needs to be taxable and that food can be profitable. Take a moment to turn back to page 32 to view the vacant land use map. Now consider the economic impact of tax delinquent vacant land around Youngstown. It is unlikely the city is collecting tax revenue from these properties, as abandoned and tax delinquent property is often taken over by the city government.2 The emphasis on reinstating a taxable product would promote Youngstown’s economy and reestablish viable land use. As of 2000, 24.8% of Youngstown residents were living below the poverty level,3 which means people are looking for jobs and affordable healthy food. Toronto’s plan for urban agriculture articulates the importance to regenerate vacant and contaminated land through investment and job creation.4 Therefore, the more land Grow Youngstown can put into production, the more people it will employ, the more food it will grow to feed they city, and ideally the more money it will make through sales to directly to citizens, food retailers, and restaurants. It is recommended for Grow Youngstown to discuss funding and grant 99 opportunities to kick-start the growth and development of its vision. This project would like to highlight and recommend the USDA’s, Community Food Project Competitive Grants Program, which is described from an excerpt taken from a 2009 document:5 Community Food Projects are intended to take a comprehensive approach to developing long-term solutions that ensure food security in communities by linking the food production and processing sectors to community development, economic opportunity, and environmental enhancement. Comprehensive solutions should focus on: (i) improved access to high quality, affordable food among low-income households; (ii) expanded economic opportunities for community residents through business and economic development, improved employment opportunities, job training, youth apprenticeship, school-to-work transition, and (iii) support for local food systems, from urban gardening to local farms, that provide high quality fresh foods with minimal adverse environmental impact. Any solution proposed must tie into community identified food needs, directly connect outcomes to goals and objectives, and substantially involve and/ or be generated by members of the low-income community, i.e. “community-based” not just “community-placed.” Low-income people must be the participants and direct beneficiaries of project activities and outcomes. Project goals should integrate multiple objectives into their design. Proposed projects should seek to address outcomes beyond a specific goal, such as increasing food produced or available for a specific group. Goals and objectives should integrate economic, social, and environmental impacts, such as job training, employment opportunities, small business expansion, neighborhood revitalization, open space development, transportation assistance, or other positive community outcomes. Proposed projects should seek comprehensive and well-planned solutions to 100 problems across all levels of the food system, not only short-term, emergency food relief. This point is emphasized because some previously submitted proposals expanded applicant efforts in food relief and assistance or connected established or partially established programs, such as community gardens and farmers’ markets, with little evidence of strategic community planning and participation by low-income residents and other stakeholders in the proposed project design. Proposals should emphasize a food system and/or food security approach and show evidence of information sharing, coalition building, and substantial outreach to and involvement of the community. This project would seriously be considered for funding. This comprehensive and well-planned solution for turning Youngstown into a sustainable food city would be considered for funding. Kaufman and Bailkey even note that between the inception of the Community Food Projects Competitive Grants Program in 1996, and 2000, at the time of their study on entrepreneurial urban agriculture projects, twenty-one (30%) of the 69 projects awarded funding obtained some aspects entrepreneurship.6 Despite the fact the Community Food Projects website states grants are intended for private nonprofit entities,7 the program encourages Grow Youngstown’s quest for funding. Local partnerships can also be explored, with the potential for all shareholders to influence policy to shape the future of Grow Youngstown and its contribution and influence of local food and outreach in Youngstown, Ohio. Seek precedence Grow Youngstown should review the Community Food Projects Competitive Grants Program, and also Jerry Kaufman and Martin Bailkey’s (2000), “Farming Inside Cities: Entrepreneurial Urban Agriculture in the United States.” Although the report is a decade old, its principles and theories support entrepreneurship within urban agriculture support the opportunity for Grow Youngstown to profit from their food efforts. 101 Moreover, Kaufman and Bailkey discuss successful entrepreneurial models in Chicago, Philadelphia, and Boston: their history, location, funding methods, and their impact on their respective communities. Furthermore, exploring city plans for urban agriculture, such as Seattle’s P-Patch system, will help intensify the criteria and methods, to drive decision-making and policy planning. Prior examples of success will provide impetus for Grow Youngstown to render a successful model through supplementing their own vision with reference with precedent models. Food Assessment Conduct a food assessment. A food assessment is a particiapatory process examining a broad range of food systems issues, helping formulate an understanding of the opportunities and gaps in the current food system.8 A food assessment engages the community in several ways, notably involving a diversity of stakeholders from government, public, private, and non-profit sectors. It recognizes food access through mapping - a technique to visually analyze physical food infrastructure and outlets, and their relationships to consumers.9 Ultimately, a food assessment will enlighten Youngstown on the efficiency of its food system, and provide impetus to drive policy and planning iniatives on becoming a sustainable food city. 102 Figure 5.1 - Community Food Assessment Diagram - A diversity of people and organizations can initiate the assessment process, invoking a variety of strategies for change. Source: Pothuckuchi10 103 Food Policy Finally, Youngstown should consider initiating a food policy council. This volunteer group of advisors helps promote policy and food planning initiatives fostering sustainable a sustainable food system: organic agriculture, nutrition, equitable food distribution and food consumption, and environmental health.11 Vancouver’s food policy council is made up of food enthusiasts, chefs, planners, gardeners, farmers, and waste managers.12 A food policy council will also help construct a food charter, which states the its initiatives and vision for food in their city. Vancouver’s mayor and city council accepted the food charter proposed by the Vancouver Food Policy Council on February 17, 2008, to serve as a benchmark for the role of food in urban areas, and its commitment to food security, food education, and a sustainable thinking.13 The document serves as the vision, which will drive future initiative and policy recommendations to local government. Final Remarks The commentary on Grow Youngstown’s potential will continue well after the conclusion of this project – or so the designer wishes. This project has set the table for community organizers, local government, city planners, and other visionaries, to consider the opportunity for food to reshape Youngstown’s landscape. The success of cities’ futures will be dictated by innovative solutions intended to support citizens in creating a sustainably high quality of life. Urban agriculture is a part of the discussion, and food precincts will soon join in. Like it did after publishing the Youngstown 2010 Citywide Plan, Youngstown will present another innovative planning and design model to the country and the world. One exemplifying the successful role of food in sustainably revitalizing the city. 104 Endnotes 1 Grow Youngstown, http://www.growyoungstown.org/index.html, 2006. 2 Jerry Kaufman and Martin Bailkey, “Farming Inside Cities: Entrepreneurial Urban Agriculture in the United States,” Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, 2000, 4. 3 Census 2000. 4 Gerda R. Wekerle, “Toronto’s official plan for urban agriculture,” presentation to the Toronto Food Policy Council, June 18, 2002, retrieved from http://www.cityfarmer.org/torontoplan.html, March 3, 2010, 3. 5 USDA, “Community Food Project Competitive Grants Program,” 2009, 7. 6 Kaufman and Bailkey, Entrepreneurial UA, 10. 7 USDA: National Institute for Food and Agriculture, “Community Food Projects,” http://www.nifa.usda.gov/funding/cfp/cfp_synopsis.html, March 18, 2009. 8 Provencial Health and Services Authority, “Community food assesment guide,” prepared by Sue Ross and Zena Simces. 9 Kamishwari Pothukuchi, “Community Food Assesment: A First Step in Planning for Community Food Security,” Journal of Planning Education and Research, Sage 23:4, 370. 10 Pothukuchi, Community Food Assessment, 361. 11 Vancouver Food Policy Council, “Our Goals,” http://www.vancouverfoodpolicycouncil.ca/our-goals, 2008. 12 Vancouver Food Policy Council, “About Us,” http://www.vancouverfoodpolicycouncil.ca/our-goals, 2008. 13 City of Vancouver, “Social planning, food policy, Vancouver Food Charter,” http://vancouver.ca/commsvcs/socialplanning/initiatives/foodpolicypolicy/charter. htm, June 12, 2009. 105 Glossary of Terms Biochar - Biochar is charcoal that is used for agricultural purposes. Biochar is created by heating biomass in a low oxygen environment. Once organic matter is heated, the process is self-sustaining, requiring no outside energy input. Benefits of biochar include, soil moisture retention and fertility improvement in poor soils. 1 Culturally appropriate food – food that supports eating and cooking practices of specific cultures and ethnicities Food desert – a city district lacking access to food, forcing residents to have to drive or travel great distances to access food Food oasis – a city district with multiple food outlets (grocers, restaurants, food banks) for people to access Food precinct – a centrally located (in a city, district, or neighborhood) food center structured around the principles of a sustainable food system. Peri-urban agriculture – agriculture practices occurring on the perimeter of a city Phytoremediation – the use of vegetation to treat contaminated soils2 Productive land – active agricultural land producing food crops or livestock Organic agriculture – agricultural practices that eliminate any harmful substances or methods that would deplete the health of the environment or the quality of food. Sustainable food city – A town/city exercising practices that engage the sustainable food system Urban agriculture – agricultural practices occurring with urban areas Waste recovery – the collection and the recycling of organic waste Endnotes 1 Biochar, “Biochar overview,” http://www.biochar.info/biochar.biochar-overview.cfml, 2 Jerald L. Schnoor, et al., “Phytoremediation of Organic and Nutrient Contaminants,” Environmental Science & Technology, 29,7, 318-323, American Chemical Society, 1995, 318. Bibliography Barber, Dan. “How I fell in love with a fish.” TedTalks. 2010. Britz, Richard. 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