Austin City Council makes changes to urban farm code

Many of the opponents to the ordinance that spoke during the meeting said they felt the urban farm use was inconsistent with the nature of single-family zoning.

"This is not anti-urban farms," said Zilker Neighborhood resident David King. "This is about protecting single-family neighborhoods from commercialization."

Some specific concerns opponents raised against urban farms in single-family zoning included animal slaughtering composting the waste products from meat processing and non-farm activities such as weddings.

"The properties in question are not in rural settings," said Daniel Llanes, coordinator of the Govalle/Johnston Terrace Neighborhood Contact Team. "They are in a densely populated, single-family neighborhood surrounded by homes and churches."

Other community members, including Austin resident Carmen Llanes Pulido, brought up the issue of gentrification as it pertains to the East side.

"These communities, and in particular the communities of color that were relegated to this side of town when it was terrible—when conditions were much worse—are trying to stay in this city that they love," Pulido said.

Those in support of urban farms said the farms help build a cohesive community and offer educational experiences.

Paula Foore, co-owner of Springdale Farms, said they bought the land in 1992, and have good standing in the community.

"We know our neighbors, we all live on our farms, and we're all actually quite neighborly," Foore said.

Springdale Farm does host weddings, but its farm is commercially zoned, so the business would be allowed to apply for a conditional use. Council voted to keep current regulations that restrict uses including weddings in single-family zoning.

John Dromgoole, a local organic gardener, said the community benefits from the farms by supporting other business including restaurants and co-ops.

"Austin is blessed to have these urban farms around," Dromgoole said. "I call them family farms, that's what they are. The urban farm supplies the public with fresh, locally grown, organic produce in season and grown in a health soil. They make that soil healthy. More neighborhoods need urban farms."

Martinez said he hopes the community can continue to work together even through contentious debate and differing opinions.

"After this is said and done, the sun is going to come up tomorrow and we're still going to be neighbors, we're going to be Austinite," Martinez said. "I want us to think about that, moving forward, because what I see happening over and over at city hall and on this dais is what we see in other places that we don't want to be. We don't want to be like Washington D.C. We don't want to be like Dallas. We want to be Austin. So I hope folks will join with me and us in allowing the continued debated and even discourse to take place when we have these issues."

The City of Austin created the urban farm use in 2000 and the farms have always been a permitted use in single-family zoning. What spurred the debate over the code was a complaint lodged against Hausbar Farms in 2012 regarding the smell from its compost pile.