Why did the City want the Og-woi removed?

Spring 2023

The Og-woi Collective received a letter from the Director of Salt Lake City Public Lands on March 21, 2023, that requested the garden be removed. The letter outlined the following items:

– Cease planting any additional trees or other vegetation at the garden. 
– Remove any garden boxes, trellises, or similar garden infrastructure that you installed at the garden. 
– Cease constructing any new garden boxes, trellises, or similar garden infrastructure at the garden.
– Cease expanding the underground irrigation system that you’ve installed.
– Remove the wooden kiosk (including concrete footings) and the mural that have been installed at the garden.  

As of May 1st, 2023, the City’s Public Lands Department may remove any materials or vegetation from the garden at the Department’s discretion. 

– The City encourages you to submit a CIP application if you would like to continue pursuing use of the site as a community garden. More information about the City’s CIP process, including application timelines, can be found at: https://www.slc.gov/Finance/home/capital-improvement-program-cip/:
**The CIP application should request funding for professionally-designed-and-sourced infrastructure that would be needed to ensure the garden is a sustainable community asset. This includes, but is not limited to, fencing, irrigation, garden boxes, and soil remediation materials. The Public Lands Department will work with you and all other constituent CIP applicants to develop a great application this fall.
**If a CIP application is approved, the Public Lands Department would work with stakeholders on a management plan for the potential future garden. This plan would identify the preferred garden operator, whether it be Blue Sky Institute or an alternative organization.   

By April 30th, 2023, provide a written description of any specific trees or other plants that you think should and can be preserved on the site without irrigation. Public Lands will consider the information included in this written description as the Department manages the site as part of its broader Jordan River Corridor maintenance operations.

Why did the city send this letter to remove the Og-woi?

The letter stated that “due to ongoing and legitimate concerns expressed by the community members” that included the items below, which are addressed under each concern. A letter was returned by the Og-woi collective to address these concerns.

Unpermitted origin of the garden

The Og-woi was started in a neglected lot on the Jordan River Parkway with a fruit tree planting on Memorial Day 2020 as a nation-wide climate call to action to plant food in public spaces.  Volunteers thereafter returned each Sunday to plant and maintain the Og-woi.  Salt Lake City officials soon approached Og-woi volunteers, proposing to negotiate a formal agreement recognizing the garden.  In the subsequent years Og-woi volunteers invested thousands of labor hours and tens of thousands of dollars, planting and tending to the garden and orchard. An extensive process ensued, including a Salt Lake City public engagement process in 2021 which led to an initial decision to uphold the Og-woi project, finding overwhelming support for the Og-woi through that engagement process.

Soil quality considerations

After the city conducted a soil test of the non-food planted areas of the Og-woi that revealed higher than normal levels of lead, volunteers established an expert advisory board and adopted ‘Garden Volunteer Safety Measures’, to address contamination issues that occur in the soil throughout the valley. (Note that the soil testing was *not* conducted in the areas of vegetable plants and fruit trees where the soil had been amended.). Raised beds have been built and soil amendments have been implemented as a result of the research in the field about urban gardening.

Additionally, the Og-woi Collective has an Expert Advisory Board on Urban Gardening in Contaminated Soil, which is listed in our Resource Padlet (see link below).

Ensure that any potential use of the site has adequate infrastructure to be a long-term community asset

The Og-woi has been lovingly maintained by volunteers, and the infrastructure that is supporting the project was created with community resources only without any resources from the City. The infrastructure provided to the community by the community has provided ongoing opportunities for community building, community resilience and personal responsibility and empowerment, and has proved adequate for three years so far, so this is not a valid concern.

The Og-woi project is sponsored by the 22-year old 501(c)(3) Blue Sky Institute, and has various volunteers with decades of expertise who have guided and created the infrastructure of the Og-woi.  While not built with the model of initial high cost and little to no maintenance which the city uses, the Og-woi project has been built with more limited resources and the plan to provide maintenance as is necessary. The long-term vision and plan for the Og-woi contains community assets such as  raised vegetable garden beds (including wheelchair accessible beds), an outdoor classroom for experiential learning, self-guided educational tours of the orchard, and local artwork,