City oasis gives homeless hope and shared purpose
Crowd-funded gardens feed community and generate income
ONCE, it was just an open plot of land used as an ad hoc dumping space alongside the fruit and vegetable outlet in Roeland Street, overrun by rats, a haven for drug dealers to hide their goods, and reeking of human waste and rotting foodstuffs.
Just a few years later, the area has been transformed into a thriving urban fresh produce garden, complete with a greenhouse for seedlings, two composting stations, rainwater harvesting tanks and an office to sell produce to the public.
It’s all thanks to Streetscapes, an offshoot of Khulisa Social Solutions, which employs homeless people to man the gardens, sow and care for the seedlings and plants, harvest them and sell them to the public and other outlets. It helps give the homeless a sense of purpose.
The Streetscapes gardens in Roeland Street and at Trafalgar High School on the slopes of Devil’s Peak are among these success stories, and this year the organisation hopes to go one better. It aims to establish a third urban garden and plans to do so entirely via crowdfunding.
“We have had so much positive feedback from residents, community organisations and businesses that time felt right to do the third garden together,” said Khulisa strategic partnerships manager Jesse Laitinen.
“There is something symbolically so powerful if we do this together. It means its not just us who share this vision and are passionate. It becomes a movement. A movement of caring people who think out the box. I love the idea of living in a city like that. So much more inspiring.
“So it’s not just about the money, it is about joining hands and having a sense of belonging with the broader community. I get goosebumps just thinking about it!”
Laitinen said they had already identified a site for the third urban garden. “We have been lucky to have been offered a few (sites). The city, Trafalgar High School and residents in the same area have approached us with different options. We are working with all the parties to find the most suitable one. Constitution Street seems right now like the best one.” Streetscapes is using crowdfunding as a way to raise funds for the new garden.
“It is a unique model as it is established especially to create a direct way for residents to give responsibly, and where even R5 matters. Most garden purchases are under R30! And when there are many, they cover salary costs for our workers.
“The operational costs are never covered from donations or sales from the gardens. The operational costs are funded by wonderful funders who have stuck with us since beginning, Central City Improvement District and Ackerman Pick n Pay Foundation. We are very grateful.
“All the donations to the campaign go to cover infrastructure needs and labour cost for the homeless. Thundafund takes a small cut for their costs. So it is a safe, direct way to give and we are proud of it,” Laitinen said.