The campus community and local residents are invited to an open house to learn more about the planned expansion of Urban Farm programming.

The event, hosted by Campus Planning and Facilities Management, will share information about the potential expansion sites and the university’s site selection process. The event will take place at the site evaluated to best support the expansion, located on Riverfront Parkway just north of the Millrace Garage, from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 27.

The Campus Planning Committee is expected to make a recommendation about site selection on Nov. 1. 

The Urban Farm has been in operation since 1976 as a model for alternative urban land use where people grow food, work together, take care of the land and build community. The urban farming curriculum supports approximately 320 students annually, and courses fill up quickly.

Last spring, the College of Design facilitated a consensus-based visioning process for the Urban Farm program that included students, faculty and staff.

That visioning process cited a need for additional cultivatable land that would allow the Urban Farm to expand its courses and research programming. The university has pledged $1 million toward the College of Design vision to assist in implementing the project. Campus Planning and Facilities Management has collaborated with the College of Design to identify land for the expansion project.

Throughout its history as part of the Department of Landscape Architecture, the Urban Farm programming has focused on integrating biological, ecological, economic and social concerns.