Charlottetown residents want a community garden on Brighton lots that have sat vacant for 15 years

Residents of a neighbourhood in the heart of downtown Charlottetown hope to have a community garden in place on some vacant land by the time spring arrives. 

The three lots of land, located near the intersection of Spring and Victoria streets and Villa Avenue in the Brighton area of the city, have sat unused for about 15 years. 

People who live in the area say they're now used as a shortcut through the neighbourhood, with people sometimes camping there, using drugs and dumping garbage. 

"The number-one concern that everyone had was this [land] and the kind of activities that it has been attracting over the last several years. If there were a community garden, it would certainly help reduce some of those issues," said resident Rick Christopher. 

"People are often now afraid to walk by here at night and so it's really become a bit of a problem for the neighbourhood." 

Two of the three lots that make up the proposed community garden site are actually city-owned. There's water and sewer infrastructure underground that would make it challenging to build on the land. 

A third portion of the site is privately owned, but hasn't been used in several years. City council is looking to negotiate the purchase price of that property with the owner, but hasn't finalized anything yet. 

"The land that is being proposed for purchase is on the market right now for $129,000. City staff believe that this cost is higher than the land is worth," Charlottetown council's June 11 agenda notes about the proposal say. 

"Should council authorize this project, staff would work to negotiate a fair price before bringing a resolution to council for final approval. Funds to purchase this land have not been budgeted in the 2024-2025 budget, so council would need to endorse the budget for this land." 

Norman Beck, the city councillor who represents the area, said he couldn't comment on those negotiations, but said council would be having discussions about the community garden proposal "shortly." 

The residents first brought the idea to the city about a year ago, and have since collected more than 100 signatures on a petition in favour of launching a community garden on the property. 

Beck said he thinks it's a great idea that aligns with the city's environmental sustainability and community building goals. 

"I think what I like about this is that there's a high level of community engagement that's coming from the resident group," he said. "It makes use of land that's really underdeveloped." 

As for the residents, they hope to be able to start preparing the gardens next spring. They say the area is dense with apartments, and the project would give people the ability to grow some of their own food right in the middle of the city.