Urban & Suburban Neighborhood Design & consultation

Approximately 80% of the US population resides in urban areas. That’s roughly 250 million people! So many people mistakenly believe that they must have ample acreage or financial resources to grow more of their own food. Enough land on this planet exists to feed everyone abundantly, many times over, and the only thing lying in our way is the grass that covers it. Those of us with yards can choose to divest from grass, transition to garden AND, it can be done economically, as well as in a manner that boosts curb appeal and increases the value of the house to boot.   

One of the greatest benefits of urban areas is that they are so densely populated. While land might not be in great abundance individually, collectively, there’s more than enough to grow food for everyone and best of all, community abounds if we plug in and get to know our neighbors. We simply must choose to shift our gaze from that of scarcity to abundance because the answer to increasing food security lies right beneath our feet. 

In June 2025, I launched the "Huffman Grows" Neighborhood Homesteading Pilot Program in the Huffman Historic District in urban Dayton, Ohio to demonstrate the abundance that lie in wait in our urban communities. 

10 residences within the neighborhood registered to participate in this homesteading pilot program and each has "signed up" to host any number of various homesteading elements (annual gardens, orchards, berry patches, chicken-keeping, etc.) and or to take on various homesteading responsibilities (seed-starting, carpentry, food preservation, etc.). They'll be working together, as a community, with myself as their organizer and guide, to install a comprehensive array of annual and perennial food production systems that will bountifully produce for the whole of the network.

I've conducted initial consultations with each household to determine viability of their "chosen" elements, as well as to determine approximations of how many trees, shrubs, bushes, raised beds, etc., they can host in each of their yards. The next steps will include soil testing for heavy metals and available nutrients, invasive species removal, preparing each site to receive their chosen homesteading "elements," and educational classes to prepare each residence for the elements of their choosing. 

Installations of the food-production systems will begin in winter + spring of 2026 and I'll begin offering this service widely to neighborhoods all across the United States and beyond in summer 2026. If you have an interest in starting an urban or suburban neighborhood homesteading network of your own, but don't know where to begin, be sure to get on my waiting list and I'll be in touch with initial steps.