Garden Funding Received & Expansion Conversations Underway

805 Simmons Street — A Monument of Faith Church property and the future home of the Grant Street Community Garden.

We're excited to share that the Grant Street Community Garden has officially reached another important milestone.

Earlier this week, we received the first $9,000 installment of our $10,000 Community Garden Grant from the City of Durham. The remaining $1,000 will be distributed later this fall after we submit a progress report documenting the work that has been completed.

In addition to this grant, generous contributions from individual donors have brought the total funding raised for this project to $10,200 so far.

With majority of the funding now in hand, the work begins.

Next week, community garden team leads Sasha Tiller and Jimaune Williams will meet with Erin and Kendall Dooley to finalize project logistics, review purchasing estimates, establish a project calendar, and prepare for volunteer workdays in the months ahead.

We'll also be potentially partnering with Brittaney Robinson-Whitenhill and her team at Our Backyard to complete a site assessment, conduct soil testing, and provide recommendations for a long-term water source to help ensure the garden is sustainable for years to come.

Conversation with Real Estate Division Manager for the City of Durham, Aleicia Bass.

Expanding The Garden

We're also encouraged to share that Council Member Matt Kopac connected us with Aleicia Bass, Real Estate Division Manager for the City of Durham, to begin conversations about expanding the community garden onto the city-owned lot directly behind the current space.

While no decisions have been made yet, the conversation was incredibly encouraging.

If approved, this expansion would allow us to:

• Add significantly more community garden beds for neighbors and Monument of Faith church members.

• Grow additional fresh food for the neighborhood.

• Create gathering spaces where neighbors can connect across generations.

• Continue developing what we hope will become Grant Street's third place—a welcoming community space outside of home and work where relationships can flourish.

The City shared that the next step will be an internal review to determine whether the property can be made available for community use. We'll keep neighbors updated as those conversations continue.

We are deeply grateful to everyone who has volunteered, donated, prayed, advocated, and dreamed alongside us. We're excited to invite more neighbors into the work as we move from planning to planting.

For more information, we invite you to attend the monthly community meetings on the 4th Saturday of every month.

- The Grant Street Community

An example of how we would like to expand the community garden with the additional lot behind 805 Simmons St.