ABOUT US

All People’s Garden Inc. was created as a not for profit organization in 1978 by former VISTA volunteer Olean Cowart  For a community organizer who work with the neighborhood community development organization known as Interfaith Adopt-A- Building, Inc.  The garden was fashion out of a vacant site owned by the City of New York, and was strewn with discarded rubbish. With the help of the community and other volunteers, slowly remove the debris and create the beginning of a community garden space.

In 1979 with the support of the Council on The Environment of the City of New York (now known as GROWNYC), a plan to open the garden for community use was also supported by the then Mayor Ed Koch and Ms. Liz Chrystie the pioneer for the first community garden on East Houston Street and the Bowery.  All People’s Garden is the first Grow NYC’s PLANT-A-LOT garden in New York City. At the opening Mayor Ed Koch with Liz Chrystie plant a ceremonial Rose Bush.

The ceremony was conducted to symbolize the working coordination of the City of New York in the beginning of the redevelopment of the Lower East side community open space and housing.

Using the garden as a community resource, Olean establish a program to benefit the neighborhood children by establishing the first girls club services in the Lower East Side community, tenants organizing and drug resisting efforts.

The membership volunteers continue to improve the garden space with community contributions and help by such organizations as GROWNYC, Green Thumb, Citizens Committee for New York City, Trust for Public Land and many others donors, contributors and supporters.

In 2003 with the support of GROWNYC, All People’s Inc, Inc., received a sizable restoration grant from the Evan Frankel Foundation which funded the full rehabilitation of the garden. The restoration includes Plantings, a performance stage, fencing Gazebo, tool shed, stone pathways, open plaza, and other garden equipment’s.

 In 2002 The then Mayor of New York , started a plan to sell most of these garden developed city owned property to private interest for the development of market rate housing (some was bulldozered and sold) , which by this time has seen the development of hundreds of community open space throughout the boroughs of New York. All Peoples was one of many garden spaces which was saved from destruction with the assistance of New York State Attorney Generals agreement with the City Of New York through a Legal agreement and The Trust for Public Lands (TPL) using donors’ funds.

All People’s Garden, Inc., later join with fourteen (14) other gardens in Manhattan to form the Manhattan Land Trust.  The organization is a membership organization, and are all staff by volunteers.