The Eastside Lansing Allen Neighborhood Center will host a grand opening for its $35,000 GardenHouse on May 10.
The GardenHouse is on the east side of Hunter Park, and is part of the Allen Neighborhood Center’s effort to make healthy food accessible to all Eastside residents.
“My prediction is that this is the first of many,” Joan Nelson says about the future of GardenHouses in Lansing. Nelson is the director of the Allen Neighborhood Center.
The GardenHouse is a greenhouse that has more than 20 different seed beds. Each bed is sponsored or tended by a different neighborhood or social group. When the plants are large enough, they’re moved to the garden outside of the green house.
“I’m constantly being amazed by how growing things brings people together,” Nelson says.
Much of the food will be used for the Allen Neighborhood Center’s Breadbasket Program, which provides free bread and seasonal produce to Eastside neighbors.
“This improves nutrition and community connectivity and contributes to a healthier Eastside,” she says.
The GardenHouse is funded with $35,000 in State of Michigan Cool Cities funding and several donations from local businesses.
Source: Joan Nelson, Allen Neighborhood Center
Ivy Hughes, development news editor, can be reached here.
All Photographs © Dave Trumpie
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