Expanding the Use of Vacant Land for Urban Agriculture in Champaign, IL: Uniting the Built, Social, and Natural Environments

Abstract

Urban Farms are an ideal platform for generating dialogue among various parts of the community and are seen as a resource that contributes to the improvement of conditions in poor neighborhoods in cities. The City of Champaign has some of the most productive soil in the world, but also has a high number of vacant land in close proximity to the downtown area, a high rate of unemployment, and a lack of access to fresh food within the same area. This report seeks to unite these discrepancies by formalizing a system of urban farms within these underutilized plots of urban land within the City of Champaign. It also offers recommendations for addressing potential barriers to urban agriculture that have been identified based on review of the Building and Zoning Code of the City of Champaign.