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Marra Farm History

The Marra Family, Italian truck farmers, worked this land from the early 1900s until the 1970s when they sold it to King County. It is one of the last two remaining pieces of original agricultural land in Seattle. In 1997, a handful of neighborhood residents launched the earliest restoration efforts at the Farm with support from a VISTA volunteer. The following year, a diverse group of nonprofit organizations, government programs and individuals joined together to care for this valuable agricultural space. In 2000, community organizer John Beal and the King Conservation District daylighted a section of the Lost Fork of Hamm Creek on the western edge of Marra Farm. Working as the Marra Farm Coalition, a group of organizations and individuals (listed below) continues to build and expand Marra Farm's role addressing community food security needs, providing a space for sustainable agriculture education, and engaging community members.

Community Served & Needs Addressed

• Poverty: South Park is an area of high poverty, with very few affordable fresh produce sources. More than 13% of South Park households live below the poverty line. Over 90% of children at South Park's Concord Elementary School qualify for the free or reduced school lunch program. According to 2000 Census information, the population is 37% Hispanic, 34% White, 15% Asian, 8% Black, and 6% other.
• Pollution: South Park is one of the most polluted areas in our region, making the pristine farmland at Marra Farm a particularly vital community resource. A freeway and a large highway isolate South Park from other, nearby residential neighborhoods of the city. Surrounded by industrial land, South Park includes an unusually high number of industrial sites for a residential neighborhood.
• Food insecurity: Access to nutritious food, particularly fresh produce, is very limited in this community. While two small mini-groceries exist, they have limited offerings of fruits and vegetables. South Park has no supermarkets, and Seattle's recent growth in farmers markets has not yet reached the neighborhood.

Marra Farm Coalition Members

• Lettuce Link, a creative urban agriculture effort of Solid Ground, promotes environmental stewardship and organic growing methods while addressing hunger among thousands of families with low incomes throughout Seattle.
• Seattle Youth Garden Works (SYGW) empowers homeless and at-risk youth (aged 14-22) through garden-based education and employment. Youth tend their plots at Marra Farm, sell their produce at the Columbia City Farmer's Market, and receive a share of the proceeds from their cooperative market garden business.
• City of Seattle Department of Neighborhoods P-Patch Program works in conjunction with the nonprofit P-Patch Trust to provide community garden space for residents of 44 Seattle neighborhoods. The Marra Farm P-Patch provides 20 garden plots to area residents.
• Mien Community Garden is tended by Yao Fou Chao and Mien community members with low incomes who practice traditional Mien agricultural techniques. All of the food generated goes to feed the families of the gardeners, Mien elders, and food banks in the International District and Beacon Hill neighborhoods.
• South Park Neighborhood Association (SPNA) is the community council for South Park and steward of the South Park Residential Urban Village Plan. As the steward to the Neighborhood Plan, SPNA provides the coalition with meeting space, liability insurance, and support in decision-making processes.

Community Partners

• Concord Elementary School: Located within walking distance of Marra Farm, this school has a high population of children from families with lower incomes.
• YMCA Community Learning Center Program: Provides extended learning opportunities for Concord Elementary students, with an emphasis on family and community involvement and learning.
• Providence Regina Food Bank: Serves the South Park community.
• Solid Ground's Operation Frontline: Offers outdoor cooking and nutrition classes at Marra Farm.
• IMAPAL Foundation: Works for clean water and stream restoration in South Seattle.

• Lettuce Link program brochure
• Gardening for Good Nutrition: A Guide to Growing Your Own Healthy Food (developed by Lettuce Link staff and volunteers; this 17-page .pdf file takes a few moments to load)
• Directions & Bus Routes to Marra Farm
• One student volunteer's story 

• Marra Farm Fall Fest: Usually held the third Saturday in September. Celebrate the harvest and the South Park community with games, music, food and fun for all!
• Organic gardening classes: Seasonal classes offered each year. Call for information & dates.
• Volunteer with the coalition's nonprofits: Work with youth, help grow & harvest! See contact info below.

Partner Contact Information:

Lettuce Link
Michelle Bates-Benetua, Program Manager
206.694.6754
michelleb@solid-ground.org

City of Seattle P-Patch Program
Laura Raymond
206.615.1787
laura.raymond@seattle.gov
www.cityofseattle.net/neighborhoods/ppatch 

Seattle Youth Garden Works
Volunteer & Outreach Coordinator 
sygwvol@thechurchcouncil.org 
www.sygw.org 

South Park Neighborhood Association (SPNA)
Joseph Smith
206.767.3650 x1
sephs@comcast.net