Update: La Mesa Community Garden Advocates Are Seeking a New Site

Updated at 2:10 p.m. Feb. 10, 2012

Dreams of a community garden at Helix Charter High School may have died Thursday night—but not for a fruits- and vegetable-rich garden elsewhere in La Mesa.

La Mesa and Helix officials expressed dismay Friday at the Grossmont school board’s decision rejection of a joint-use agreement for a community garden on the University Avenue school’s campus.

“While certainly the city and the community garden volunteers are disappointed, the community garden enthusiasts are already working on another potential site in La Mesa,” said Yvonne Garrett, assistant city manager.

Garrett declined to say where the site might be until garden advocates get their approvals.

Rani Goyal, executive director of Helix Charter High School, said via email:

We are disappointed in the board’s vote as this garden served a significant educational opportunity for our students through hands-on experiences, and we looked forward to providing the community another way to interact with Helix  Charter High School as we are a community school.

Goyal said the school would continue to find other “pathways of learning for students that meet our educational goals and provide students with learning experiences that are progressive as well as engaging.”

She didn’t say whether Helix would seek another path to having a garden on campus.

Original story posted Feb. 9, 2012:

Helix Charter High School might someday have a community garden, but it won’t be under the wing of the Grossmont Union High School District.

By a 3-2 vote, the school board Thursday night rejected a joint-use agreement with the city of La Mesa for a 6,000-square-foot garden sought by Helix staff and area residents.

“There is no insurance company on earth that would take this exposure” to lawsuits, board member Jim Kelly said during a 25-minute debate at the board’s meeting room in El Cajon. “There’s not proper oversight [of the garden]. We will be sued for negligence. … The potential exposure is massive.”

Board president Robert Shield and member Jim Kelly also accepted the advice of schools Superintendent Ralf Swenson and his staff not to approve the MOU—or memo of understanding. (See attached PDF.)

“I cannot accept this partnership,” Swenson said, citing a variety of concerns, including the “long-term viability” of the garden. “But as a district, we will support Helix’s efforts” to find another way to create the garden.

Said Kelly: “When you think of a garden, you think of a botanical garden. This is more. … My concern is supervision.”

Kelly said he feared the prospect of people camping out at the garden in an Occupy-movement style presence.

“Does a teacher have to supervise all these,” Kelly said. “This is a dream, but it’s not a plan.”

Members Dick Hoy and Priscilla Schreiber supported the Helix garden planned near its science building, disagreeing with the majority that the school district would face certain lawsuits growing out of liability concerns.

They quoted different parts of the MOU, which they contend spared the school district from being liable to lawsuits over garden use.

Hoy noted that Pop Warner football leagues play on district facilities—among several examples of community groups operating on high school campuses.  And he said the MOU allowed the district to exit the deal in 60 days if need be.

“It’s one of those things we should be doing with our communities,” he said.  “I frankly can’t see why we don’t want to do this.”

Schreiber said she studied the liability issue and concluded it had a “hold-harmless” element. “It’s perfect.”

But in concluding remarks, Kelly predicted “a strong possibility” that if anyone got hurt in the garden or hurt someone else, “they will sue this district. We have done no due diligence. They will sue us and win if we don’t do due diligence.”

Deputy Superintendent Scott Patterson left the door open to Helix having the garden by accepting responsibility for the operation itself, perhaps through a sublease arrangement.