Isn’t this a delightful meadow? It is located right across from the historic Felton Covered Bridge (https://tonytomeo.wordpress.com/2017/12/02/felton-covered-bridge/). The trail to the left goes up the embankment into the parking lot of the old County Bank Building, right downtown. On a warm day, it is a nice cool short cut to the Felton Covered Bridge Park, just over the San Lorenzo River.
You should have seen it a few years ago. It was not such a nicely inviting meadow, but was instead an excellent collection of small garden plots within a fenced Community Garden that deer could not get into. There were about nine small olive trees behind the fenced area. The stumps in the foreground and to the left were two small curly willows. People living in apartments or where the shade of the surrounding mountains and redwood forests prevented gardening could rent parcels here to grow vegetables, flowers or herbs. It really was nice.
Then it was destroyed.
Everyone who rented plots there was evicted. Surrounding oaks, box elders, willows and other vegetation were eradicated. Fortunately, the olive trees were relocated. The whole area was graded by bulldozer; and the Community Garden was gone. Now, the vacant meadow grows only a thicket of thistles that needs to get mown down every summer.
Apparently, someone thought that there might possibly be the remote chance of the potential for homeless people to maybe engage in activities that could perhaps be determined to be bad, right behind the Community Garden. If you look closely, you might be able to see them back there. Maybe not. (More accurate information can be found at the Facebook page of Felton League at https://www.facebook.com/Felton-League-520645548069493/ .)
Well, after making this observation, the expert on the sociology of the homeless, and self-proclaimed representative of the thousands of others in Felton, convinced the owners of the property to fix the problem. You see, only by singling out and targeting a particular segment of our Community can we put Unity back into CommUnity. Demolishing a Community Garden certainly helps too. It took a lot of hassling, and a lot of lies, but it was finally done. This is what we have to show for it, as proof that killing a Community Garden helps with homelessness.
Tony Tomeo 
That is council decisions gone crazy. Community gardens are such a good way to share and care for the land. But I guess the homeless are not going to do any squatting, or other things amongst those thistles…
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It was not a Council decision. We do not have a Council in Felton. It was just one hateful person and maybe a few of her friends hassling the property owner until they did what she wanted. Besides the tenants, not many people in town knew about it until it was done. Homelessness is not much of a bother here. In fact, the people of Felton are remarkably generous and supportive of the homeless because we know them all. Clear cutting, fences and obtrusive signs are more of a problem. So are people moving in from somewhere else and wanting to do things the way they did where they came from.
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Oh that is even worse that a small majority can be so heartless and you are very lucky not having a council
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When I say that it was a few, I mean that it was a few; as in one and maybe one or two of her friends. Most of us are aware that she suffers from mental illness, and make accommodations for her. She gave law enforcement a lot of grief a few years ago. However, the property owners are not local, and did what they needed to do to shut her up.
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I like the sound of your caring community
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Yes, it is pretty excellent!
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What a sad story, and sad commentary of the times we are living in. Jeez, those nasty homeless people might have even eaten some of those veggies. Sad, so much sadness all around.
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Well, I should tell you then that the homeless here are somewhat well cared for. This just happens to be one of the worst examples of hatred for the homeless, and really did not affect the homeless as much as it affected the property owners, tenants and everyone who appreciated what they did in the Community. Except for the very few haters, the people of Felton are remarkably generous and compassionate. The homeless are quite well fed, and there is actually surplus. Those who do not want to be homeless do not stay homeless long. We find them jobs and homes.
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That’s wonderful, cos so many communities just don’t care. Now if those gardeners could just have the pleasure of growing their plots again……….
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I think that most communities care. Our community cares very much! (You might want to check out the Facebook page of Felton League.) The problem is that there is no solution for all of it, and for larger towns with larger populations of homeless, the problem seems so hopeless. San Jose has homeless camps that are bigger than Felton! Los Angeles has a smaller ratio of homelessness, but such a huge population that there are even more homeless there than in San Jose.
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Yes I was homeless there at those times and yes we congregated in the area. There were some awesome vegetables come out of there yes even homeless folk took part of. A few horse trailers parked in the back lot then and a trail ran through to the church it was quite smooth relaxing area! I hope this happens again for you all.
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Was it the ‘Green Wall’ back then? Some know it as the ‘Fishbowl’ now. The trail is still there in the picture, but the alley from the old County Bank parking lot to the A&W (now Felton Chinese Food Restaurant) is fenced, and there is another fence between the A&W and Felton Presbyterian Church. That only means that you would now need to walk around A&W. People still congregate there like they always have since the beginning of time. It is certainly not an exclusive club for homeless people. Very few people who stop by are homeless. It is like a small park for those who prefer to stay out of the way. Do you feel that eliminating the Community Garden helped any of the homeless people of Felton be any less homeless?
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Reblogged this on Felton League and commented:
Again, I am reblogging a post from my gardening blog. This one happens to be from December 9, 2017. There are actually a few more articles of the gardening blog that would be relevant here (which is partly why I established a second blog).
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