Its not easy being green, but Gardens Under Glass located under the glass atrium of the Galleria in downtown Cleveland hopes to make going green easy to achieve. Last year after reading an article in Urban Land, Vicky Poole came up with the idea to utilize the empty space in the Galleria to support the local Food movement. “As we run out of land, why not utilize empty buildings and especially the Galleria as it lends itself perfectly.” The Civic Innovation Lab must have thought the idea would bear fruit, as she was awarded a start up grant of $30,000.00. Poole demonstrates different growing methods with the use of hydroponics, which uses water and nutrients instead of soil, aquaponics and conventional growing methods. Vertical growing is also an important demonstration, as urban agriculture is gaining popularity. So far she has had success growing vegetables such as lettuce, herbs, cucumbers, and currently has a nice crop of peppers on the way.
The ultimate vision for the initiative is to provide a neighborhood functional retail and business "ReSource Center" (opened in September), providing information about local food production, environmental sustainability, and green products and services to promote lifestyles that leave a much lighter footprint on the earth!
Vicky Poole will be the guest speaker at the BVGT meeting Tuesday, November 9th at City Hall beginning at 6:30 pm. Come and hear all about this innovative and exciting project!
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