Grow Calgary wants to be the world’s largest urban garden
Non-profit group that grows produce on 4.5-hectare plot along utility corridor wants more land
A local non-profit organization that grows food for the Calgary Food Bank is looking to make a huge expansion.
Grow Calgary has been leasing a 4.5-hectare parcel of land along the city's transportation utility corridor near Canada Olympic Park since 2013.
It’s planning a major expansion so it can plant dozens more gardens in all four quadrants of the city.
Farm manager Paul Hughes said the group is seeking another 255 hectares along the corridor.
"It’s minimalism. It’s the most simple thing in the world. It’s empty land and empty stomachs and we just connected the dots,” he said.
“This organization that people work at, Grow Calgary, we are based on a fundamental belief that everyone should have access to nutritious food.”
A spokesperson for the minister of infrastructure and transportation says there have been some informal talks about an expansion, but the department hasn't received an application yet.
Hughes says the group plans to submit its proposal by next week.