Community Development in Spryfield, Nova Scotia: Creating and Urban Farm

Abstract

The Urban Farm Museum Society of Spryfield is a community driven initiative that was founded to commemorate the agricultural heritage of Spryfield, Nova Scotia. In its effort to enhance the social well being of community members by promoting skill development and food security, the Urban Farm developed a physical site that was precedent setting with the Halifax Regional Municipality at the time of its inception. This community-based case study research explores the perceptions of community members and a former Halifax municipality staff member who participated in the process undertaken by the community that led to the Urban Farm. The study aimed to understand the underlying local values, knowledge and structures that contributed to the development of the Urban Farm. Themes arising from the data re: community pride, urban planning processes and development, community participation, and tensions between urban and rural development are discussed and are based on the perceptions of those who participated in interviews.