Construction Underway in Linda Vista for First-Ever Community Garden in a City Park
The San Diego Parks Foundation, city of San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria, city of San Diego Councilmember Raul Campillo, and Bayside Community Center celebrated the groundbreaking ceremony for the Linda Vista Community Garden in Linda Vista Park.
A model public and private partnership for enhancing the city of San Diego’s public park space, San Diego Parks Foundation with support from Bayside Community Center raised nearly $500,000 to create the first-ever community garden located within a city of San Diego park.
“The groundbreaking of the Linda Vista Park Community Garden is a historic moment for the city of San Diego,” Mayor Todd Gloria said. “Thanks to the San Diego Parks Foundation, its donors, and volunteer carpenters for helping us build the first-ever community garden on City property, moving us toward a greener, more sustainable future that not only enhances the beauty of our surroundings but also fosters a sense of togetherness for our residents.”
The Linda Vista Community Garden is slated to complete construction and open in spring 2024. Designed to serve nearby residential neighborhoods and residents, the Linda Vista Community Garden will feature an ecologically diverse and community-enriching mix of gardening opportunities and outdoor amenities. It will feature a greenhouse, 22 raised garden beds, picnic areas, shade structures, an outdoor classroom area, and established gardens of fruit trees and pollinator plants.
“The Linda Vista Community Garden will transform an underutilized portion of Linda Vista Park into a thriving and beautiful community garden that benefits park visitors and the surrounding community,” said San Diego City Councilmember Raul Campillo. “Neighbors will be able to garden and recreate with their community, grow fresh and nutritious produce, and enjoy an enhanced public park space.”
The Linda Vista Community Garden has been made possible through the philanthropic support of major donors: Wendy Gillespie, Walter J. and Betty C. Zable Foundation, Cushman Foundation at Jewish Community Foundation, Price Philanthropies Foundation, SDG&E, the Matthews Foundation, and other generous donors. In-kind construction labor for this project has been generously provided by the Southwestern Regional Council of Carpenters Local 619.
“This community garden can serve as a model for how the community and city of San Diego can continue to work together to enhance our city’s park space,” said Michel Anderson, chair of the Board of Directors of the San Diego Parks Foundation. “With the Linda Vista Community Garden as the first-ever community garden in an existing City park, we’ll continue to support and facilitate similar investments in parks across San Diego’s neighborhoods.”
Bayside Community Center, a Linda Vista community-based nonprofit with a 90-year legacy, will operate and manage the Linda Vista Community Garden when completed next year. The Linda Vista Community Garden was previously housed onsite at Bayside Community Center from 2011-2017.
The center has been working to find a new home for the garden over the past six years. For those interested in the Linda Vista Community Garden and opportunities to garden, please contact Amy Zink, Bayside Environmental Learning Center Program Manager, at azink@baysidecc.org.
“We cannot wait to welcome friends and neighbors to the Linda Vista Community Garden in spring 2024 when we’ll open this new garden space to learn and grow together, while simultaneously addressing one of our neighborhood’s most pressing challenges: food insecurity. This would not have been possible without our partnership with the San Diego Parks Foundation, the city of San Diego, generous donors, and dedicated community members,” said Kim Heinle, executive cirector of Bayside Community Center.