In partnership with Tempe Parks, Friendship Village Tempe has opened a new community garden at Ehrhardt Park, located at 4003 S. Evergreen Road adjacent to the senior living community. Named Friendship Evergreen Community Garden at Ehrhardt Park,the project includes 56 gardening plots available for reservation on an annual basis by the general public.
“We believe in being good stewards of our neighborhood and saw an opportunity to positively impact the surrounding area by investing resources into Ehrhardt Park,” said Cole Marvin, executive director at Friendship Village Tempe. “With the support of the city of Tempe, we have transformed an underutilized public space into a community garden that will be a beneficial agricultural hub for years to come. Friendship Evergreen Community Garden at Ehrhardt Park is not only a source of pride and joy for our community, but for Tempe as a whole.”
Collectively spanning 1 acre, the plots at the community garden are open for the cultivation of flowers and vegetables. In addition to sections that are walker and wheelchair accessible, the garden includes a composting station with eight bins, irrigation systems for each plot, and secure storage sheds for stowing gardening and maintenance tools. A part-time staff member from the Tempe Environmental Services Department is on-site to support ongoing garden maintenance.
“It’s been an enjoyable journey seeing the community garden take shape, and we are excited for the public to finally take advantage of this great resource,” said Marvin.
A majority of funding for the project was provided by Friendship Village Tempe. The community’s resident-run foundation and its construction partner, Ryan Construction, also donated funds toward the endeavor.
Additional information about the community garden is available at FriendshipEvergreen.com.
