ITHACA, NY (607NewsNow) — For years, both potential and current residents of Longview have been asking for a community garden. Now, they are making that request a reality.

Kim Owen, the Director of Marketing and Sales at Longview, says she has been growing vegetables in her office to prepare for the start of the garden.

“Beans, peppers, snow peas, regular peas, three different kinds of tomatoes, cucumbers, and different herbs are some of what I’ve started on so far. We want to see if we can get some fruit trees, hopefully donated by a local orchard, to really round out the variety that will be offered in the garden,” says Owen.

The garden has been funded by donations that came from community engagement, not the Longview budget. Whitmore Fence, Agway, T.P. Work Pro, and Cayuga Compost were contributors who were more than willing to making Longview’s vision come true. A generous anonymous donor matched a $5,000 contribution that Longview had raised already, giving them a boost. Cornell Cooperative Extension also aided in being able to execute the necessary steps to get to this point.

So far, the main garden bed has been built, with T.P. Work Pro soon to put in fencing and soil in the bed itself.

Process of the main bed being built at Longview, courtesy of Kim Owen.

Being able to provide a community garden for their residents means Longview is able to better cater to the wishes of their residents. Without it, a lot of potential residents expressed hesitancy about joining the community.

“One of the dealbreakers for people were not being able to have their own washer and dryer units, so we listened and were able to add those to independent living apartments. Now it’s a similar situation, many people weren’t sure if they could part with the gardens they spent so much time on while living at home. Adding a community garden brings vibrancy and allows our residents to participate in something most of them feel passionately about.”

Process of the main bed being built at Longview, courtesy of Kim Owen.

Residents will be able to decide their level of participation in the garden, with more regular jobs as well as opportunities to complete tasks here and there both being options. A garden club that meets once a month held its first meeting last week and will be where residents can share ideas, get updates, and sign up for jobs.

Ongoing donations are accepted in the form of a check (with Community Garden in the subject line), and in the form of an online donation. Scan the QR code here or click on it to be taken to the donation page:

Longview aims to hold a ribbon cutting for the garden in June.