When the City of Minneapolis fenced in the vacant lot on the corner of 28th Avenue and Johnson Street NE earlier this fall, it didn’t take long for it to become an impromptu dog park. Sorry, dog owners. The lot, which has sat vacant since Clyde Haug’s Phillips 66 station was torn down more than 20 years ago, is not going to the dogs.
The Audubon Neighborhood Association (ANA) has negotiated with the city’s Community Planning and Economic Development (CPED) department to lease the land for one year to build a market garden. Before anything can be planted, however, some environmental cleanup may have to occur. Even though the underground gas tanks were removed, decades of use as a filling station may have left the ground contaminated with spilled broken glass, heavy metals, oil, gasoline and other chemicals.
Hennepin County property records show the City of Minneapolis purchased the half-acre parcel for $1 in December 1993 and earmarked it for affordable housing. Since then, the city has kept the grass mowed and the sidewalks shoveled while it waits for the right developer to come along.
“CPED definitely doesn’t want a dog park in there,” said Deb Brister, ANA executive director. “They are very concerned about people not picking up after their dogs and having fecal materials run off into the storm sewer system and into neighboring properties.” There’s also concern about dogs leaving the fenced area and charging into traffic on Johnson Street.
If the lot is too polluted for dogs, how can a food garden be built there? Brister took soil samples earlier this fall and sent them to the University of Minnesota. They’ll test the soil over the winter to see what’s in it, and determine if extensive remediation would be required to enable food production. Brister suspects the results will be adverse, so she’s ready with Plan B: raised beds to separate the food from the ground. Such beds would also allow wheelchair-bound people to participate in growing food as well.
The garden envisioned by the ANA wouldn’t be the typical community garden where individuals rent a plot and plant what they want. It’s seen more as a means of providing fresh produce to Northeast food shelves and as a business incubator. “Entrepreneurs could grow food to sell as produce,” said Brister, “or turn it into value-added products such as jams and sauces.” Produce could also go to Northeast Middle School, where 79% of students receive free or reduced-price lunch.
Noting that Hmong farmers often bring different Asian vegetables to the Audubon Farmers Market, Brister said the garden would allow Kenyans in the neighborhood to grow more culturally-specific African produce for their use and for sale.
A dog owner herself, Brister wanted to let residents know that a dog park is “still on the table” at Audubon Park. Discussion of the Minneapolis Park Board’s East of the River Master Plan put the unleashed running area for dogs in the northwest corner of the park. However, there are concerns about fecal contamination in the sewer system and dogs getting loose and into traffic on 29th Avenue; a final location has yet to be determined. The park will begin renovation in 2024, with completion the following year.
The garden and the dog park will be discussed at the next meeting of the ANA on Monday, Dec. 5, at 7 p.m. at the Audubon Recreation Center, 1320 29th Ave. NE. It will also be available on Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84572982788?pwd=NTZlakVyZ0JUTU9ERGtDc2NMLzlpZz09; Meeting ID: 845 7298 2788; Passcode: 706632.
Below: The Audubon Neighborhood Association would like to start a market garden on the corner of 28th Avenue and Johnson Street NE. Signage shows a reminder to dog owners to take their pets to the St. Anthony Parkway Off-leash Dog Park and that soil testing is in progress on the site. (Photos by Cynthia Sowden)