It’s not uncommon for workers at the manufacturing plant directly behind Unity Garden to enjoy their lunch and a card or chess game on the garden’s back brick patio – it is the only open space nearby where they can enjoy some time outdoors during the work day. These local workers are just one of many groups who utilize and have come to appreciate the tranquility and beauty of Unity Garden. Named by a local schoolgirl as a result of an essay contest for the garden, its flower-filled expanse covers two side-by-side lots that, prior to the garden’s establishment, was home to a wide range of trash and abandoned vehicles.
Local leader Lagoldie Jacobs lives adjacent to the space and led the effort to clean it up and turn it into a community garden. Lagoldie’s husband created the layout, dozens of people from the neighborhood and local community-based groups rolled up their sleeves, and six months later Unity Garden was up and growing. NeighborSpace then became involved, making the request to the City of Chicago to have the alley vacated on behalf of this community project, and securing the deed to the property, which conserved the land and preserved the space as a permanent garden.
Over the years Unity Garden has evolved from its original plan to incorporate many more flower species, two brick patios, an arbor and several benches painted with images of African-American history by neighborhood children. Lagoldie is proud that the original intent of creating Unity Garden has never changed despite its physical evolution “We wanted to create somewhere for people to sit and just enjoy the neighborhood. We didn’t have anything like that in this area. All neighborhood people working together made it happen.”
In Lagoldie’s Words: “Without NeighborSpace to help us out by buying the property for the community and providing other important things like insurance, Unity Garden would have been a much bigger struggle to establish.”
Best Practice Idea: Lagoldie stresses that dedicated local residents are the key to helping keep community gardens thriving. “People in the neighborhood – people who are dedicated – are key to keeping a garden up. You need help. Just a few people are OK, but even more are better.”
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