New produce garden proposed for South Townsville
Date published: 15 October 2015
Townsville’s homeless residents will soon have access to a new vegetable garden in South Townsville.
A meeting of council’s Community and Culture Committee today supported a recommendation to lease a small parcel of land at Morehead St to the Townsville Drop In Centre for a Cooperative Produce Project.
This 12m x 5m fenced garden area will including wicking beds and pots and grow produce for use in the centre’s kitchen, which serves between 50-150 meals per day.
Committee chair Cr Sue Blom said the garden would be built and maintained by the centre’s staff and would be a great benefit to the community.
"Not only will this garden grow food, but it will also support the centre’s aim of being socially inclusive and developing the life skills of people who are homeless in our city," Cr Blom said.
"A garden such as this allows residents to learn gardening skills and how to be self-sufficient, in turn helping them to reconnect back into mainstream society.
"This project will assist the centre to cater for its growing clientele base and will be built on land adjacent to their current building.
"The new lease arrangement would be for up to 10 years at a cost of $1 per year, with responsibility for construction, maintenance and improvements in the hands of the centre staff."
The TDC, previously known as the Community Emergency Support Centre, supports homeless and vulnerable people in the Townsville area that are willing to make the transition to secure and maintain long-term accommodation.
The recommendation will go to Full Council for approval on October 27.
