In keeping with the increasingly popular “grown local” food trend, neighbor Jake King-Gilbert is planning to start an urban farm in East Dallas called Terra Tech Farms.
The farm will be an indoor hydroponics farm, and will be located on Elm, just to the east of Deep Ellum. Through it, King-Gilbert will provide fresh, sustainable, pesticide-free produce to the Dallas community all year around. The plan is to sell at farmers markets — like the White Rock Lake Market — and to restaurants throughout Dallas, he says.
“The Dallas ‘grown local’ food movement is really just beginning, and I feel my farm would be a great addition to it,” King-Gilbert explains. “I have launched a Kickstarter page to raise the rest of the funding I need to build the farm.”
Kickstarter, also a ever-growing trend, is an online funding platform for creative projects like King-Gilbert’s. You can find more about his project on the website. if you like what you see, you can pledge an amount of money of your choice. If King-Gilbert reaches his goal by the end date (June 26), then the money will be taken from your account. If he doesn’t reach his set goal, then the project is considered null, and no money will be withdrawn.
Regardless of whether or not the project hits the cyber jackpot on Kickstarter, King-Gilbert plans to move ahead with the plans for the garden. But, if that’s the case, it will take longer for the project to get off the ground and reach maximum impact in the community.
“I have signed the lease on the commercial space, filed all the LLC paper work, built the website (www.terratechfarms.com), and I have also been growing produce for over a year now, in small batches to ensure I have a sound business plan,” he says. “I am very passionate about this and feel the providing the people of Dallas with a truly local option for sustainable produce is important.”
