MONTPELIER, Vt. (WCAX) – Only tree tops were visible over the eight feet of water that covered Feast Farm in Montpelier last summer. Almost a year later, the farm is turning over a new leaf on a flood-proof plot.
Feast Farm Manager Charlie Watt tills row after row of soil which will soon be a garden to replace the one last summer’s flood destroyed.
“It was heartbreaking in a sense because a lot of hard work was put into growing these vegetables,” said Watt.
The farm run by Montpelier’s Community Services Department grows produce for those experiencing food insecurity and runs community gardening opportunities. It was on track to grow more than $20,000 worth of food in 2023 until the floods washed it all away.
“Devastating not only to me and just my sense of joy that I get from this work, but for people who were getting to eat the food that we’re producing and participate in the programs that we were running,” said Watt.
Fearing another flood, Feast Farm left its plot at home in search of higher grounds. It just took root across the street on city-owned land on Country Club Road. Watt says the roughly 2-acre plot is slightly larger than the old site, with better car accessibility and higher-quality soil.
“I was happy to know that it was a natural fit to land here because the city already owned this parcel and it worked well for what we’re trying to develop here,” he said.
The new farm will feature a vegetable garden, a tree nursery and a BIPOC community garden to replace the one the flood wiped out. Garden manager Kalé Camara hopes to create a welcoming space for the growing number of BIPOC residents moving to Vermont.
“They want to have a relationship with nature, but they’re intimidated and I’m just, I’m really excited to create an opportunity for folks not to feel so intimidated,” said Camara.
Though surrounded by trees and open fields now, Feast Farm will eventually border multifamily buildings and townhouses slated for the site. The way Watt sees it is the more neighbors, the merrier.
“I think it’s just a beautiful opportunity to get a front-row look and active participation and grow our food all together. So I think it’s going to be great,” he said.
Feast Farm is just kicking off planting with plans to drill a well this summer.