This empty lot at 914 Redondo Avenue will soon be a community garden after being awarded a permit by the City Council. Photo by Jason Ruiz.

A vacant lot on Redondo Avenue could soon become a community garden after the Long Beach City Council approved a permit for it Tuesday night.

The permit was awarded to Long Beach Organic, which already operates seven community gardens citywide. The nonprofit will now be allowed to develop the 6,200-square-foot lot just south of 10th Street into an eighth garden where members of the community can rent space to grow fruits and vegetables.

Plans for the site include 22 ground-level planters as well as two raised planters and an 8-foot-tall arbor to grow grapes. Special conditions attached to the permit’s approval require that the garden be accessible only from 7:30 a.m. to dusk, use only organic fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides, improve the existing chainlink fence and make gardeners remove their trash daily.

While there was broad support from both community members and the City Council, some residents spoke out against the project arguing that the lot would attract vandalism, dumping and homelessness.

Patricia Davenport, a resident of the neighborhood, said that nearly 100 people had signed a petition opposing the garden because of its potential impacts on traffic and the possibility of attracting theft and vandalism, things she argued have occurred at other community gardens. Davenport said the site, with its two access points being an alley and Redondo Avenue, could be problematic for neighbors of the garden.

“Many of the business owners on Redondo Avenue will describe to you their difficulties in having parking for their customers,” Davenport said. “The alley has been a nightmare. I can tell you of at least three fires that have happened in the last five years.”

The garden would be situated about six streets west of the Zaferia Junction Community Garden also operated by Long Beach Organic. The group’s seven gardens serve nearly 200 people across the community, but many, like the Zaferia garden, have long waiting lists to get in.

Joe Corso, Long Beach Organic’s garden director, said that there is currently a yearlong wait to secure a plot at the Zaferia location. He said the development of the Redondo site would provide more urban gardening opportunities in a part of town that has high demand.

“Our gardens become focal points in their neighborhoods,” Corso said. “Neighbors get to meet each other sometimes for the first time and an interest in gardening often cuts across barriers including age, gender and ethnic lines. The proposed garden on Redondo would provide this opportunity to 24 more households on what is now a blighted lot.”

Supporters and opponents agreed that the site could be improved from its current state. The plot has been empty since May 2015.

The council vowed to work closely with residents in monitoring any complaints about the garden once it’s up and running. They said the garden’s operator would be required to address any nuisances. However, some argued the garden would likely root out the very issues that concerned residents.

“This is more than just vegetables; it’s a bigger opportunity,” Councilwoman Stacy Mungo said. “We talk about trying to get rid of crime or trying to get rid of elements you’re not familiar with. There’s nothing that works better than activation. You could never hire enough police officers to compensate for activation.”

Jason Ruiz covers City Hall and politics for the Long Beach Post. Reach him at [email protected] or @JasonRuiz_LB on Twitter.