File #: LM-2023-0326    Version: Name:
Type: Order Status: Passed
File created: 5/9/2023 In control: City Clerk
On agenda: Final action:
Title: ORDER OF THE BOARD OF ALDERS OF THE CITY OF NEW HAVEN AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR OF THE CITY OF NEW HAVEN TO SUBMIT AN APPLICATION TO THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, UNITED STATES FOREST SERVICE, IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $6,000,000 OVER A PERIOD OF FIVE YEARS, FOR THE FOOD SYSTEM POLICY DIVISION TO SUPPORT ITS CAPACITY TO CONTINUE TO PARTNER WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND ORGANIZATIONS TO IMPLEMENT A SERIES OF PLANS AND ACTIVITIES THAT WILL CREATE AN ENABLING ENVIRONMENT FOR URBAN AGRICULTURE, REDUCE BARRIERS TO ENTRY AND SUSTAINABILITY, AND IN WHICH ALL RESIDENTS WILL EQUITABLY BENEFIT FROM THE POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL, HEALTH, AND SOCIOECONOMIC OUTCOMES OF MORE GREEN AND GROWING SPACES.
Attachments: 1. Checklist for Aldermanic Submissions_USDA-USFS-IRA_2023.pdf, 2. Letter to President of Board of Alders - USDA-USFS-IRA_2023 (1), 3. Letter to President of Board of Alders - USDA-USFS-IRA_2023, 4. Order_USDA-USFS-IRA_2023, 5. Prior Notification Form_USDA-USFS-IRA_2023, 6. Fiscal Impact Statement_USDA-USFS-IRA_2023, 7. Notice of Intent_USDA-USFS-IRA_2023, 8. GrantSummary_USDA-USFS-IRA_2023, 9. Executive Summary_USDA-USFS-IRA, 10. Signature Page
TITLE
ORDER OF THE BOARD OF ALDERS OF THE CITY OF NEW HAVEN AUTHORIZING THE MAYOR OF THE CITY OF NEW HAVEN TO SUBMIT AN APPLICATION TO THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, UNITED STATES FOREST SERVICE, IN AN AMOUNT NOT TO EXCEED $6,000,000 OVER A PERIOD OF FIVE YEARS, FOR THE FOOD SYSTEM POLICY DIVISION TO SUPPORT ITS CAPACITY TO CONTINUE TO PARTNER WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS AND ORGANIZATIONS TO IMPLEMENT A SERIES OF PLANS AND ACTIVITIES THAT WILL CREATE AN ENABLING ENVIRONMENT FOR URBAN AGRICULTURE, REDUCE BARRIERS TO ENTRY AND SUSTAINABILITY, AND IN WHICH ALL RESIDENTS WILL EQUITABLY BENEFIT FROM THE POSITIVE ENVIRONMENTAL, HEALTH, AND SOCIOECONOMIC OUTCOMES OF MORE GREEN AND GROWING SPACES.

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WHEREAS, across New Haven, 22% of the City's residents are food insecure, - with not enough food or money to buy food - much higher than the Connecticut rate of 12% and national rate of 13%; and

WHEREAS, in two recent studies in New Haven - DataHaven's Wellbeing Survey and CARE's New Haven Health Survey - food insecurity impacts 1 in 3 adults in the City's lowest income neighborhoods; and

WHEREAS, urban agriculture has the potential to increase food access and food security, improve health, generate income, build skills, enhance community development, and develop connections to broader efforts to address structural causes of inequities; and

WHEREAS, food systems are particularly useful in health and community development precisely because many low-income communities have a rich heritage of expertise in food production (over 50% of refugees have agrarian backgrounds) and food business entrepreneurship and supporting this expertise is an approach to asset-based development; and

WHEREAS, the City of New Haven's Food System Policy Division since its creation has partnered extensively with relevant residents and community organizations regarding urban agriculture and food systems initiatives across the City of New Haven.

WHEREAS, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Fore...

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