As the sun rose over Collingwood Children’s Farm community gardens on Monday morning, illuminating rows of overgrown plants and vegetables, Lyndale Cooper – chained to a fence out the front – burst into tears as men in fluorescent orange vests appeared.
Allotment renters at the veggie garden expected their plots to be razed from Monday, with workers first coming in to remove some of their possessions – things like pots, garden implements and compost bins.
Inner-city gardeners chained themselves to the fences of their beloved veggie patches in an attempt to stop the planned demolition of the Collingwood Children’s Farm community gardens on Monday morning.Credit: Jason South
About 20 green thumbs rallied outside the gardens on Monday, awaiting the arrival of the bulldozers and ready to protest against what they say is the first step in the destruction of decades of cultural and community history.
When the fluoro-vested workers started up their whipper snippers about 8.45am, there was a resounding sense of loss among the protesters, who have vowed to maintain a “watch and act” for big machinery in the coming days.
The gardeners say they are exploring legal avenues to stop the works, including the possibility of seeking a court-ordered injunction. Protest organisers called police to the farm on Monday over concerns belongings from their allotments might not be returned to them.
Farm management say they have assured the gardeners they will do everything they can to give them their possessions back.
The Collingwood Children’s Farm community gardens.Credit: Jason South
Police told the gardeners it was not an issue they would deal with, but they would look into it, while they told farm management they were well within their rights to retrieve possessions from the garden, given a WorkSafe notice to resolve safety risks.
“I miss my family very much, and I have no one around except my husband, so this plot it is a big blessing – it’s an answer to my prayer,” Ms Cooper said.
A Malaysian-Australian, Ms Cooper found a sense of community when she landed the plot in 2017. She went from making do with a single chilli plant at her apartment, to having a space all of her own to garden.
“I still want to maintain my plot. I want to maintain all the community that is in this plot. I want to see the kids growing, coming in and enjoying food,” she said.
Last June, farm management announced the land needed to be cleared and the gardens rebuilt from scratch after a consultant’s report found there were unacceptable safety risks, including snakes and exposed star pickets.
Since then, more than 100 people who used to work the plots have been locked out while the gardens have become overgrown.
The community gardeners say the safety issues could be addressed if they were allowed back on site, but management maintains major works are needed to reach the required standards.
The gardeners fear that, once the site is razed, the farm might switch to a social enterprise community garden model, without individual allotments.
Management says it has consulted extensively with the gardeners despite disruptions from COVID-19, and wants to open it to the wider community, not just those who have a space allocated in the 70 plots.
They say it will remain a community garden, and the model will depend on feedback from the community, who have welcomed the chance to develop a new garden on the site after more consultation.
“Yarra is becoming more dense, more populated. We have a legal obligation to ensure that the work that we do here at the farm benefits people experiencing adversity,” farm chief executive Conor Hickey said.
“Our mission has a statement which is [specific to] children and people with a disability ... we’re making sure that space is accessible to everyone.
“This was set up 42 years ago, and it hasn’t changed for 42 years.”
Protest organiser Giles Fielke had, with his partner, leased a plot at the garden for a couple of years.
They imagined their seven-month-old son growing up with access to that allotment; nurturing veggies and flowers, and revelling in the sun and sense of community it provides.
“We imagined coming and using the children’s farm,” Mr Fielke said. “We also want to have a bit of a say in what the children’s farm is doing – how it’s going to change or what’s going to change over the next few years.
“They’re saying they’re going to consult, but only after they’ve cleared away the whole site. So that’s not really consultation.”
Local MP and Housing Minister Richard Wynne recently announced $860,000 of taxpayer dollars would be gifted to “improve safety and accessibility, ensuring all community members can enjoy the garden”.
Ms Hickey has said the money was a “hallelujah” moment for the organisation, and prompted the announcement that contractors would start clearing the land.
With Rachael Dexter
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