The Spokane City Council and Planning and Development Services Department is hosting an Urban Farming Open House on Tuesday, July 30 from 5:30 to 7:30pm in Room 1A/1B of the Downtown Branch of the Spokane Public Library (906 W Main) [map].

The event was organized in response to increasing local interest in urban farming, which is gaining popularity throughout the country. Organizations like Project HOPE (the Emerson-Garfield Neighborhood Council’s partner for the Emerson-Garfield Farmers’ Market), community gardens like the Emerson Community Garden, and The Father’s Table (a neighborhood small business) can all be considered part of the urban farming movement, not to mention private residences scattered throughout the neighborhood and indeed the city.

The City Council and the Planning Department are leading this effort to research, evaluate and develop a system to better support and provide regulations for urban farming. The goal is to get an ordinance passed by the end of the year.

The workshop will be for the purpose of discussing ideas and generating comments on possible changes to city code that could create a more consistent, predictable and streamlined system for urban farmers.

For more information, contact Tirrell Black at tblack@spokanecity.org or (509)-625-6185.