The Board of Estimates voted Wednesday to approve the sale of the Filbert Street Community Garden (1321 Filbert Street) to a non-profit organization that has overseen care and maintenance of the property for over a decade.  

Filbert Street Community Garden, Inc., a 501 (c)3 non-profit organization founded in 2010, will purchase the roughly 1-acre property for $1. The Department of Real Estate (DoRE) facilitated the disposition process for the garden, which is in South Baltimore’s Curtis Bay neighborhood.  

“This sale is a wonderful development for both the City and for Curtis Bay,” Comptroller Bill Henry said. “The community has maintained this property effectively for years. This disposition will allow their important work to continue.” 

The City originally granted temporary access to Filbert Street Garden, Inc., through the Department of Public Works (DPW) Adopt-a-Lot process. In that time the non-profit has cleaned and fenced in the area, developed vegetable and other gardens, planted trees, maintained beehives and a composting operation, and provided space for chickens, ducks and goats.  

“With this sale, Filbert Street Garden aims to amplify our outreach efforts, further expand our programming, and consistently serve the community by providing hands-on education, promoting local recreation, advocating for environmental justice, establishing wildlife habitats and combating the existing food desert here in Curtis Bay,” Filbert Street Garden Board President Derrick Wood said. 

The property was formerly part of a larger DPW-owned parcel, which includes the Curtis Bay Water Tank, part of Baltimore City’s water distribution system. Filbert Street Garden Inc. eventually approached DPW with a desire to purchase the lot. In August 2022, DPW made a request to declare 1321 Filbert Street surplus.  

“For over a decade Filbert Street Garden has been a central facet in the Curtis Bay community,” Mayor Brandon M. Scott said. “In that time, Filbert Street Garden, Inc. has responsibly managed this property, ensuring it’s beautification and utility as a community garden. We agreed now should be the time to take the next step with this sale and secure  the future of the garden for the next decade and beyond.”

More information on the Filbert Street Community Garden can be found at https://filbertstreetgarden.org/.