Have you ever had a dream that never seemed to get off the ground? For nearly a decade, community members continued a conversation, initiated by the Farmland Protection Board, about having what was informally referred to as a “farm campus”—a parcel of farmland for the Durham community that could provide new and beginning farmers with access to land, resources, and learning. Loss of farmland and access to land are a problem across North Carolina and particularly in urban areas like Durham. Cooperative Extension was encouraged to see if we could find a way to move this conversation forward and explore what was possible.
In answer to this call, Durham County, through Cooperative Extension, applied for and received a $167,015 Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production (UAIP) grant from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) in 2022 for a feasibility study—a study of the design and function of a farm campus—and established a community advisory board to move forward with planning the study.
As COVID-19 emerged in this same time period, a collective awareness of the link between farming and developing a more resilient food system grew—particularly one that systemically addresses the root causes of food insecurity. Through this feasibility study we hoped long-term that the project could help:
- launch the next generation of farmers through increased access to land, infrastructure, and markets for new and beginning farmers (FAO, 2020); and
- foster racial equity and development of generational wealth by centering the priorities of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) in design and development.
The feasibility study is underway, and the results will be shared publicly with the community and the Board of County Commissioners. The study is examining partnerships, priorities, and phasing of a Durham County Farm Campus, as well as supporting an in-depth study of how the Farm Campus can best meet community needs and goals. One of the early study goals to explore the suitability and availability of land has already been met with the purchase of land by Durham County for the campus (see the website and blog post about the land). This purchase was supported by early results of the study that clarified optimal location, acreage, and facility needs for a Farm Campus and through collaboration with our colleagues in the County Open Space Program.
Cooperative Extension is currently working with HR&A Advisors on the Feasibility Study, Site Analysis, and Preliminary Design and with CoSpero Consulting for the Community Engagement component of the study. Results of the Community Engagement portion of the study will be shared with the County Commissioners and public on October 7, 2024. Watch this blog for all the details and a link to the report. There will be many steps to go, including the full feasibility report, and we will explore these together in the coming months as we continue to dream of a future with a Farm Campus for Durham.
