San Francisco residents may be seeing kales and corns right in the heart of the city. This is after the state has decided to take advantage of a new law that gives them the power to create tax incentives for the residents.
In this new tax incentive scheme, San Francisco residents are encouraged to convert their uninhabited plot into an urban farm. As to what types of crops they can grow, not many details are available. Nevertheless, if they can do this, they will be taxed by the city based on the rates for irrigated farmland. This will then drive their tax dues to as low as $100 from around $10,000.
Residents who plan to join the program are expected to follow certain terms and conditions. First, the farmland should be improved and maintained within the next 5 years. Otherwise, the owner will be compelled to pay the tax reduction balance and be slapped with an interest.
The produce from the urban farm should be sold to the community. If more people dedicate their lands to urban farming and produce are aplenty, the prices of these goods may eventually go down. If they won't sell the produce, they would have to donate them. They must also be ready to let the community run the farm, making it more public, and accommodate groups especially schools for educational tours.
Urban farming advocates praised the new incentive scheme, but critics are also quick to point out that San Francisco doesn't own many lands from which to grow the crops. Further, it's counterproductive considering in more popular and urbanized areas, property prices are incredibly high.
Nonetheless, other states and cities are seriously considering adopting the same scheme. These include Utah and Maryland. Cleveland, Ohio, has been operating a similar program since 2010.
According to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, urban agriculture can significantly enhance food security, especially in times of critical food shortage. Garden plots may produce yield more than 10 times than rural plots.
