Allen Street Community Garden
617-201-1680
The city's nine community gardens mean Somervillians who long to garden don't have to go without homegrown tomatoes and other garden delights–even if most of us have postage-stamp-sized yards (or perhaps just a stoop). Volunteer garden coordinators manage each garden. They assign personal garden plots to interested green thumbs and organize bulk compost purchases. Gardeners pay a small fee (usually under $25 per year) and then can plant whatever they like in their plot be it flowers, herbs or vegetables.
All gardeners share upkeep of the garden pathways and compost bins, but plots are private: if you grow it, only you (and the occasional raccoon) pick it.
Every city resident is eligible for a plot, but wait lists can be lengthy. The gardens are managed by the city's Conservation Commission and overseen by a citywide garden coordinator. To sign up for any garden, contact the coordinator at the number above. Individuals and businesses with land available for a new garden should contact the coordinator as well.
- Handicap Accessible: Wide, level, fine gravel paths. Raised bed garden reserved for those requiring wheelchair access.
- Parking: On-street: free
- Features: Benches
- Area: .13 acres
This is a lovely and thoughtful Community Garden; however, it cannot meaningfully be called "accessible" until Rolling Gardners are provided usable pedestrian approaches from the streets into the gardens.
From the north (Somerville Ave.) approach:
there is no accessible route approach into entrance due to the fire hydrant in the sidewalk just several tantalizing feet from the gate. Minimum 36 inches continuous width is needed (and required by State code- see 521 CMR 20.3); here, there's 20 inches squeeze room.
Excavating and moving the riser of that hydrant may be an undue burden on municipal resources; route mitigation may only be possible from the south (Charleston St.) side.
From the south approach:
the sidewalk cross-slope is 7.5% as one approaches from abutting driveway onto the sidewalk and continues to provide a warpy route. Generally, motorized chairs are not designed for such excessively sloped terrain; they require about a 2% continuous cross slope for the length of the route.
Accessible route mitigation on this side will also involve a redesign and repour of the preceding driveway/pedestrian route overlap.
There's a curbstep right in front of the garden gate; it would be handy if this was a curbcut instead.
Thanks for the great blogs, contact and management info. and gorgeous pics!