Few
mantras have revolutionized New York City's food movement like "farm-to-table"
cuisine. Farmers markets, community agriculture shares, food co-ops and
boutique eateries all claim to bridge the gap between the organic grower and
the city dweller, but few consumers know how far away that local farm truly is;
how many miles their produce traveled from seed-to-stall, and how large the
system's effective carbon footprint is.
"EAsT river" challenges the city's current food production and
distribution strategies, proposing instead a local agriculture spine to run
along the East River Esplanade.
Questioning
the latest movements in sustainable food sourcing, the project attempts to
localize the harvesting, growth, and delivery of produce by supplanting unused
waterfront space with community gardens to run along the river. Using a trifold
strategy, "EAsT river" attempts to activate the esplanade as a vital
core of food production in the city.
Primarily,
the design scheme proposes to relocate the city's growers markets and CSA shares
onto the esplanade, localizing them on the site of the urban produce gardens.
By centralizing the food growth and distribution processes on one site, the
East River takes on an active role in showcasing and educating the community
about the self-sustaining production cycle from field-to-fork.
Secondly,
the project enables the creation of multiple scales of urban farming, ranging
from micro container gardening, to raised bed and hydroponic systems, to
vertical farming initiatives. Varying the scale of production enables local
famers to cater their growing strategies based on specific crops while
maximizing the potential of underutilized urban growing surfaces including
bridge overpasses, abandoned infrastructure and reclaimed urban refuse.
Finally,
the project attempts to foster outreach and advance food justice by connecting
local growers with food banks, soup kitchens, and community pantries. Locating
educational food labs, delivery bike share systems, and produce drives side by
side with markets and co-op shares, “EAsT River” hopes to facilitate farm-to-city partnerships, addressing
local hunger while eliminating food waste.
Ultimately
the project strives to actuate the waterfront as a dynamic visual food web, , enabling
urban growers to maintain the germination, generation, and celebration of their
local food scene.
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