monday's mulling: then and now

Back in 2007 a woman approached the City of Dayton about an abandoned lot next to a railroad track. It was enclosed by a tall chain link fence but people still managed to get in to dump their trash. The area was an eyesore. Her plan for this space was to turn this space into a community garden and an art park. After a year of dealing with city government, she got the go ahead to pursue her dream for the price of $1.00 per year. It started off with a big clean up effort and then community garden plots filled some space. She added a couple hoop houses to grow food to help those in the area who didn't have much access to fresh vegetables. Art work began to pop up in the space. She built a stage for concerts and offered classes about anything gardening. Over the years more than 3000 people volunteered to help Garden Station become a vibrant community asset. 

What a welcoming entrance walk

Garden plots, murals, trees, and trains

Bees have a hive at Garden Station

Tile mosaics and polytunnels

The garden next to the city

            “The future belongs to the few of us still willing to get our hands dirty.”                ~ Joseph Tommasi

Well, you probably know where this is going...

In 2016 a developer approached the city with an offer to buy this plot of land. Money talks. Garden Station ceased to be in 2017.

The other day I dropped a letter off at the downtown post office and afterward took a walk around the area where Garden Station existed. It took a while, but the new development is finished and has signs up to come and live in Dayton's newest apartments. I walked past the building comples, gave a heavy sigh, and noticed some murals behind them. It became an exploring moment. The original murals are no longer there but people still remember.

Thank you, Garden Station.