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Cities Developing Urban Agriculture Codes

Urban agriculture has become increasingly popular in recent years as a way to deal with vacant properties, revitalize neighborhoods, and provide job skills and nutrition to local residents struggling with poverty and a lack of access to fresh produce.

In Austin, Texas, a working group of the Sustainable Food Policy Board is meeting to clarify and update city code related to urban farms, livestock, size of farm, employees and dwellings, according to the Austin Chronicle.

The working group has been holding public sessions to gather input from urban farmers and community members about pending updates to the urban farm ordinance.

In April 2013, the Flint Farmers' Market reported that the Detroit City Council adopted the city's first urban agriculture zoning ordinance recognizing agriculture as a legitimate land use and setting standards for it.

Other cities working to update or create urban agriculture codes include Boston, Massachusetts;
Fort Collins, Colorado; and Portland, Oregon.

For more information, see USDA's National Ag Library webpage on Urban Agriculture.

Home » AgMRC Blog

Posted by Christa Hartsook | April 27, 2012 | 0 Comments

The 2012 National Value Added Conference will investigate how partnerships between economic development agencies, communities and businesses enhance the quality of life for rural residents by fostering civic infrastructure, strengthening the sustainability of agricultural production, promoting value added products, and improving economic opportunities consistent with the scale and capacity of the community.

This conference is for service providers in Extension, Rural Development, Business Consultants, State Departments of Agriculture, Small Business Development Centers, Farm Bureau, Agricultural Innovation Centers, Cooperative Development Centers and more. The conference will be held in Traverse City, Michigan on June 24 to 26, 2012.

Conference participants will have the opportunity to interact with innovative business owners and economic developers from throughout Michigan and around the US to discuss rural entrepreneurism, adding value to agricultural products, agritourism, and rural economic development. The conference will include breakout sessions and tours to allow maximum interaction between participants and practitioners.

Conference Venue - Click this link for conference resort information and registration.

Resort Discounts - Click this link for conference resort discounts.

Agenda - Click this link for conference agenda.

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