Posted on 07/21/2017 9:26:38 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
A new bill introduced in New York City Council Thursday addresses the need for an urban agriculture plan that doesn’t fall through the cracks of the city’s zoning and building regulations, the Wall Street Journal reports. The bill, introduced by Councilman Rafael Espinal and Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams and assigned to the Land Use Committee, also raises the possibility of an office of urban agriculture. If a New York City farm bill seems surprising, you may also be surprised to know that NYC has the country’s largest urban agriculture system, including community gardens, rooftop farms and greenhouses.
The city’s urban farmers have been facing a regulatory system that doesn’t know quite what to do with them, making logistical needs like insurance even more thorny than they’d otherwise be. Brooklyn Borough President Adams said, “We’re not talking about our mom and dad growing tomatoes in the backyard, we’re talking about the potential of having major farming on rooftops to deal with food deserts. This is the wave of the future.” He’s referring to the 14,000 acres of rooftop space that’s currently unused and, if converted to gardens, could have the potential to feed millions.
But according to a recent report by the Brooklyn Law School, current zoning codes make little or no mention of small hydroponic operations that, for example, supply microgreens and rare herbs to the city’s Michelin-starred restaurants. Rooftop gardens are only allowed in non-residential areas, and there are restrictions on where produce can be sold.
Councilman Espinal believes a comprehensive food plan should lift restrictions, untangle regulations and make it easier for the city to encourage agriculture, creating jobs and more access to fresh produce as well as reducing the carbon footprint associated with transporting food. “It would be a win, win, win across the board for the entire city.”
Clearer regulations would also attract more investors. John Rudikoff, head of the Center for Urban Business Entrepreneurship at Brooklyn Law School points to nearby Newark, which has revamped its zoning code to include urban agriculture-specific language. The city is now home to AeroFarms, which is among the country’s largest indoor farming businesses. Less confusion around urban farming rules could also benefit nonprofits that use agriculture as a teaching and community-building tool.
BrightFarms CEO Paul Lightfoot reports that doing business in big cities like New York, Chicago and Washington is, “devilishly difficult and expensive and slow.” And according to Jason Green, co-founder of Edenworks, a Bushwick aquaponic farming company that has raised $3 million in investment in two years, “There’s a barrier to entry here. It’s often up to the operators to work through a fragmented regulatory and incentive environment and figure out who you are accountable to.”
More jobs for the up-and-coming Irritating Bureaucrats.
You have to wonder....what idiot decided that regulation needed to be created to hinder or forbid roof-top gardens in the first place, and they are...trying to write another regulation to allow them (under certain conditions). In the end, this will be some 200-page regulation, with roof-top inspectors, and roof-top themes.
[Brooklyn Borough President Adams said, “We’re not talking about our mom and dad growing tomatoes in the backyard, we’re talking about the potential of having major farming on rooftops to deal with food deserts. This is the wave of the future.” He’s referring to the 14,000 acres of rooftop space that’s currently unused and, if converted to gardens, could have the potential to feed millions.]
“First thing we need to do is regulate it to death so its cost prohibited” he later asserted.
How do you feed millions with 14,000 acres? Doesn’t make sense,
Who’s going to do the work? They are going to have to cut welfare to able bodied people first...
I wonder why our virtue-signaling City Council does not do something about all the little lakes in the intersections after every rainfall. So people don’t have to walk out into the avenue to get around them. I thought De Blase and company were trying to reduce pedestrian casualties?
....what idiot decided that regulation needed to be created to hinder or forbid roof-top gardens in the first place,
It’s liberal fantasy math. It doesn’t have to make sense. Nor does the author need to know anything about agriculture. If people can figure out how to make the economics of this work out, however, it would be great. Nothing wrong with finding an adaptive use for otherwise dead space. But this is New York. I thought all the rooftops were going to have solar panels and wind turbines.
They should plant crops on the solar panels and on e blades of the wind turbines. That should work.
And vacant lots, etc - not like those wanting to grow something were hurting anything/anyone - but liberals are what liberals do - any sign of any kind of productivity makes them look bad in comparison --- have to outlaw public displays of good stuff....
First off: “you may also be surprised to know that NYC has the country’s largest urban agriculture system”. Well, there is no “system”. A totally unorganized collection of things is not a “system”.
Second: Instead of adding any regulations the issue needs only one LAW, which says that such matters as “roof gardens” are not a matter to be regulated; that if there are issues they are issues for whoever owns the building and for whatever company is holding the insurance policy for the issue. Additionally, there should be NO regulation as to whether goods produced in “roof gardens” can or can’t be sold in the city.
These changes would maximize the possibilities of roof gardens with zero specific regulations about them, BECAUSE there’d be zero regulations about them.
Eric Adams?? The virulently racist former cop and Black agitator who used to spar with the late, great Bob Grant on the radio? I can’t believe that little thug is now Brooklyn Borough President. Then again...I guess it makes perfect sense.
So BrightFarms paid off the politicos to REGULATE a perfectly good system to make tiny farmers "accountable" and put them out of business.
[How do you feed millions with 14,000 acres? Doesn’t make sense,]
I know, but he’s on a roll. LOL
Liberals live in an alternate universe.
Good question. who are they going to send up on the roof to take care of the gardens? Welfare recipients? Would they be required to work the rooftop gardens??
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