The effort to raise money to save the Ballard P-Patch from development is nearing its goal, with $300,000 left to raise before the end of the month.
The P-Patch fundraising organizers tell My Ballard that they expect King County Council will fully fund the Ballard P-Patch’s application for a $1.25 million Conservation Futures Tax (CFT) project, but the final hurdle is raising the matching funds. They’ve already secured $700,000 in private donations and public funding, but have $300,000 left to reach their goal by August 1.
In order to meet their deadline, the gardeners must also secure a bridge loan which will cover financing until the CFT funds are dispersed.
The non-profit organization GROW, which is the fiscal sponsor of the P-Patch will be the title holders. All donations to GROW are tax deductible, and eligible for employer matching. Any pledges of $10,000 or more will go toward a $100,000 matching gift from an anonymous private donor.
The P-Patch says over 500 people have so far donated to the campaign, and each donor is commemorated with a ribbon bearing their name. The ribbons are strung together in a garland over the patio of the garden.
The Ballard P-Patch started in 1976 on land owned by Our Redeemer’s Lutheran Church, and has been leased to the City of Seattle for just $1 per year. Our Redeemer’s has chosen to sell the land in order to pay for renovations for their building, and rather than see the garden turn into single-family homes, the gardeners have partnered with the church to raise funds necessary to purchase the land.
The long-term goal, the gardeners say, is to ensure the property has a conservation easement, which means it would be preserved as open space in perpetuity.
To donate to the P-Patch, visit their fundraising page here.
Photos by Ballard P-Patch
I’m pretty sure the optics of giving $300,000 in a pandemic/racial unrest/economic collapse to help a bunch of white people grow carrots are not going to go over all that well…