Paige Byrne flanked by Ray of Danny Todd’s and HSCDC Executive Director Kenneth J. Brewer. Photo courtesy of Paige Byrne
The Wylie Street Community Garden has been a little haven of peace and greenery right above H Street NE since 2002. Nestled between the eponymous Wylie Street, H Street NE to the south and 13th Street NE to the east, the garden has 17 plot keepers and provides fresh produce for a couple of H Street restaurants. It also allows Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten students at Miner Elementary School to learn more about how food grows. Not to mention, it’s one of the few green spaces left in the area. Early in 2014, the property on which the garden sits–which used to be privately owned– suffered a setback when it was announced that it might turn into a parking lot for a proposed condo development on the site of the R. L. Stine library. That plan didn’t come to pass, but the property has been in jeopardy since.
H Street NE resident, teacher, and garden enthusiast Paige Byrne, who loves growing sage and other savory herbs in her Wylie Street garden plot, has been heading the effort to help save the garden for about six months. She started a petition on Change.org back in January to request a partnership from HSCDC Executive Director Kenneth J. Brewer and prevent the garden from meeting an untimely fate.
Yesterday, Byrne met with HSCDC and the results were good: Wylie garden is here to stay in its current form–we hope, permanently.
HSCDC is now the owner of all three residential plots where the garden currently sits; an ongoing discussion with canopy-restoring non-profit Casey Trees as well as legislation from the DC government will ensure that the garden is not developed. The plot will also get a new fence later this summer.
Congratulations to Paige and all the neighbors who rallied together to protect this lovely green space. We look forward to following the progress of the garden and to knowing that it will continue to provide food and education for our community for years to come.
Now all I need is some of that Wylie Street Garden sage and Paige’s recipe for cheddar sage biscuits.