About the Farm Park

The West Oakland Urban Farm and Park is 1.4 acre working urban farm, educational space, and outdoor recreation site located at the corner of Peralta and Helen St.

In November 2010, California Department of Parks and Recreation awarded City Slicker Farms a capital grant to create the West Oakland Urban Farm and Park from funds raised from Proposition 84 Statewide Park Program, a bond initiative intended to improve water quality and access, conserve natural resources and bolster parks.

City Slicker Farms conducted a three-month-long community design process with West Oakland youth, seniors, and families to determine what they wanted in the new park. Community members requested that the park include lawn space (to provide ample room for kids of all ages to run, play, and exercise), a vegetable growing area, a community garden, a fruit orchard, native plant landscaping, a chicken coop, a beehive, and a playground. The West Oakland Urban Farm and Park also includes a number of features to increase environmental sustainability: drip irrigation, rainwater catchment, recycled and reused construction materials, native plants, organic cultivation methods, habitat for pollinators, growing food locally, environmental education programs, recycling and composting receptacles with educational signage, and extensive plantings of trees.

The construction of the Farm and Park provided learning and job opportunities through the community engagement, construction, and skill sharing. Volunteers donated time, resources, money and spirit into building the site.