Welcome to the Dowling Community Garden
Susan and friend Jan with friends Shelley watering Gal planting Joan and Eric in deep discussion Planting Basil

Members Page

This page is primarily for the convenience of Dowling gardeners. Information here may include such items as service assignments, reported hours and surplus donations, food shelf donation pick-up and delivery dates, and the water barrel filling schedule. The bylaws, handbook, and plot map are all in one place for easy access. Important garden updates and messages will be posted here. We have created a newsletter archive containing timely garden tips, tricks, harvest advice and recipes.

Spring and Early Summer Dowling Workshops

Information Coming Soon

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Garden Cleanup Days

Information Coming Soon

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Background Checks

Dowling Community Garden licenses the space for its garden plots from the Minneapolis Public Schools. To maintain this license, we are required to participate in the district's Community Partners Program. As such, all plotholders are required to complete the background check release form that is included in the new gardener application packet.

Some Background on the Background Checks

The Community Partners Program was created for organizations that provide services to students. Its intent is logical for organizations running programs in the Minneapolis schools. However, it is a very bad fit for Dowling Community Garden, which does not operate in schools or provide services to students. Most burdensome is the requirement that all plotholders will be required to pass a background check.

The Dowling Community Garden Committee made several attempts to explain to the district why the program was an illogical fit. We have repeatedly pointed out that it would be impossible to background check most of the people who use the open space at Dowling. Several elected officials, notably Jim Davnie and Sandra Colvin Roy, attempted to intervene on our behalf, but to no avail.

The following PDF document includes a letter to Dowling Community Gardeners from the Steering Committee explaining this action. In addition, please find enclosed a letter from Steven Liss, Chief of Policy and Operations of the district, and a copy of the form to be used for the background checks. Every plotholder whose name is listed first on the Rental Agreement is required to fill out this form. Any plotholder who fails the background check or refuses to submit the completed and signed form will be disqualified from holding a Dowling Community Garden plot.