City drops fees for food gardening in planting strips

With efforts by Seattle City Council President Richard Conlin, Mayor Greg Nickels has eliminated fees for food gardens grown in planting strips.

In previous years, many residents had been told that growing food in planting strips was not allowed. In reality, such gardens were permissible within department of transportation safety guidelines, but discouraged, according to the city.

In 2008, Conlin, chair of the council's Environment, Emergency Management and Utilities Committee, requested the transportation department clarify and communicate those guidelines to the public and shift to encourage planting strip
gardens.

The new modified rules are the result of that request.

The changes are one of several steps that council, through the Local Food Initiative, is taking to encourage Seattle residents to plant vegetables and other edible foods.

"The new rules will make it easier for people to grow their own food in Seattle," said Conlin. "Gardening in front yards and planting strips is a great way to build community."

In response to requests by the council and community, the transportation department and the mayor had proposed rule changes that would require fees and permits for food gardens. However, Conlin advocated for fees to be dropped in order to reduce costs for those seeking to grow their own food.

Council also requested that the transportation department educate citizens about these modified rules to encourage food gardening.

The changes include:

● Allowing food gardening activities that meet set-back and height requirements.

● Eliminating the need for most food gardeners to obtain street use permits.

● Providing free Street Use permits for tree planting and hardscape installations.

Planting strip height requirements include maintaining plantings so that they do not exceed 2 feet in height within 30 feet of intersections.   For driveways, plants within 10 feet of driveways shall be clear of sight obstructions between 32 and 82 inches high from the ground.  

In addition, plants should be set back 3 feet from curbs, 1 foot from the edge of the sidewalk, and 5 feet from utility poles or fire hydrants.  More information on height and set-back requirements is available in the Seattle Right-of-Way Improvements Manual here.

The Local Food Action Initiative is currently working with several community organizations to secure federal money for a variety of projects focused on providing healthy food to low-income residents through gardening, education, and outreach to neighborhood corner stores.

The Initiative also includes a request to the Seattle Department of Neighborhoods to make recommendations on what publicly-held lands can be converted for the use of local food production.