Cluck!, a new farming and supplies store, will open this month on the West Side after receiving approval from the Providence Zoning Board Feb. 20.
The board approved the store’s zoning variance in a 4-1 vote, allowing Cluck! to open at the corner of Broadway and Courtland streets.
The store’s opening is part of a larger urban farming movement in Providence. Mayor Angel Taveras recently partnered with the Southside Community Land Trust and the Rhode Island Foundation to redevelop vacant city lots for urban farming.
Cluck! will be a resource for encouraging and supporting urban agriculture in the greater Providence area, said Drake Patten, the store’s owner. Patten said she realized through her difficulties trying to grow her own food that “there was no place to go” in the area for gardening and farming supplies.
“I saw a void and decided to fill it,” she added.
Rhode Island has the highest level of food insecurity — meaning a large proportion of state residents cannot easily access food and supermarkets — in the nation, according to the Rhode Island Community Food Bank’s 2012 Status Report on Hunger. More than 15 percent of households in Rhode Island cannot afford adequate food, according to the report.
Cluck! will give people in Providence the opportunity to grow their own food, save money and improve their health, said David Dadekian, writer and editor of local food blog Eat Drink R.I. “There are a million pluses to home gardening,” he added.
The store will benefit the community and bring jobs to the area, Dadekian said.
The zoning board’s approval of the store’s location shows the city is responding to what people want to see in Providence, said Leo Pollock, director of programs at the Southside Community Land Trust. The ability of a business to open with the support of the community and local officials holds a lot of exciting possibilities for the future of urban agriculture, he added.
“Even if you have limited means, you can grow food,” Patten said, adding that urban farming also offers individuals the opportunity to eat healthier food and understand where their food comes from. City residents can garden at home or at a community location, she said.
Patten is in talks with representatives from the Southside Community Land Trust to increase the availability of fresh produce and sustainable living options in the area, Pollock said. The two parties are excited to work together to achieve their shared goal of helping “provide and connect people to resources to grow food in the city,” he added.
“People are recognizing that this is an important part of the city and the way we think about community,” Pollock said. “It isn’t about just giving people access to food but also about bringing people together.”
Patten said she is interested in teaching Brown students more about the urban farming initiative.
“You may or may not have access to growing, but we are hoping that there will be great opportunities to learn,” she said.
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