The Lierman Community Garden launched in 2015 as a way for residents to access fresh vegetables and rent a spot to plant their own produce to combat food insecurity in the Urbana neighborhood.
Now, it sits empty and untended since the neighborhood association disbanded in 2022, with proposals coming in for other development on the land at 1603 E. Washington St.
Residents of the Lierman neighborhood in Urbana have been trying for years to combat issues of food insecurity in a low-income area. Having no grocery store within walking distance of the neighborhood, its residents have struggled to find a solution.
The Lierman neighborhood is located in southeast Urbana, bounded by East Washington, Kinch Street, East Florida Avenue and South Philo Road.
The closest grocery store to the neighborhood, Salt and Light, which is over one mile away, is about a five-minute drive. For the residents who don’t have access to a car, this translates to a 15-minute bus ride or a 30-minute walk. Getting to Walmart, Schnucks or Meijer takes even longer.
Pastor Angel Johnson, a Lierman resident for many years, said that the garden was “just a way for community members to get fresh vegetables.” She had high hopes for the project and saw it doing some good in her community before it stopped being maintained.
Where the community garden once was is now an empty field, which was being leased to the Lierman Neighborhood Action Committee for $1 a month by the city of Urbana. Since the committee’s disbandment in June 2022, the garden has fallen into disrepair, and the city decided to take back the land.
There has been little news coverage about the neighborhood in recent years. No events have been held at the community garden site since 2021.
Johnson and other community members expressed concern and disapproval of the decision at multiple city council meetings, but said she has received no updates since.
On Oct. 3, 2022, Johnson “expressed concern about maintenance of the Lierman garden and the City item to consider placing housing on that corner.”
Little goes on the neighborhood now, some residents said. Even on the Urbana Arts and Culture Program’s social media page, there isn’t much activity in the Lierman neighborhood.
A single mother who lives in the Lierman neighborhood, who wished to remain anonymous, shared her experience living in Lierman in the past few years in an interview with CU-CitizenAccess.
“[We] have been waiting on something to happen … There isn’t much going on over here; the kids just do what they do, and people during the day and even at night, there isn’t much … life happening,” she said.
Community members have reached out on numerous occasions to the Urbana City Council seeking assistance with revitalizing their neighborhood in other ways.
Johnson has regularly attended city council meetings over the years, speaking up for the community’s needs. Since the fall of the garden, she has vocalized alternatives to address food insecurity, advocating for the placement of a convenience store or restaurant in its stead.
She said the garden is only one instance among many in which her neighborhood has been overlooked by the city.
“What else can I do to help?” Johnson said. “Our community is coming up with all these ideas, but they (city council) keep saying no. Everything they say they don’t think we need, we do.”
The Urbana city council member representing Lierman, Jaya Kolisetty, did not return multiple requests for comment.
A Jan. 9, 2022, city council meeting of the whole revealed a proposal by Northpointe Development to build “40 units of two-story 100% affordable mixed-income family housing” on the land.
Due to zoning issues with the proposal, groundbreaking on Lierman Avenue has not started. While community members have suggested alternative plans for the lot, the council has not approved any additional action.
Olivia Jovine, the newly-appointed director of community development services for Urbana, said she has high hopes for the future of Urbana as a whole by improving the community and improving efforts as part of the ongoing development of the Imagine Urbana comprehensive plan.
“The future could look like an Urbana with smart infill, and thoughtful redevelopment that transforms vacant or underutilized lots into homes and community assets,” Jovine said.
The new plan for Urbana will be active for the next 20 years, and the city said it will work closely with community residents and partners to ensure that the main points of the plan are addressed.
Imagine Urbana lists the three things as “vital” to ensure the plan’s success, which are:
- the Capital Improvement Plan and Annual Budget, which allocate public expenditure on projects
- Community partners’ plans and programs
- Ordinances & regulations that control development in the city
Within the community partners’ plan are action items to address food deserts, which are a crucial point of interest for the Lierman neighborhood.
Jovine said the 20-year plan will not take shape overnight. To keep the public informed, city staff will provide quarterly progress updates to the City Council. These updates will include demographic data and how it has changed each year.
“Unlike past plans that were static, this one includes built-in flexibility and regular updates based on community feedback and progress,” Jovine said. “Also, the plan is digitally accessible and interactive, making it easier for residents to explore goals, place types, and metrics in real time.”
That anonymous woman is “waiting for something to happen.” So is everyone else, no doubt. People have to MAKE positive things happen, or else the community takes on the character of the loeest common denominator. And making positive things happen takes WORK. My bet is that one or two people were doing all of the work, on a volunteer basis, to keep that community garden going. They probably just got tired. I’m always reminded of the children’s story of The Little Red Hen.
That area of Urbana has been a low-income, high-crime zone for decades, and pretending otherwise is dishonest. Businesses didn’t leave because of “changing markets” or “corporate decisions.” They left because crime made operating impossible.
Home Run Food Mart closed because of theft and violence. The Section 8 housing behind it was demolished because it became unmanageable due to crime. Jewel Osco and IGA were gone by the early 1990s. County Market closed. Walgreens closed. CVS closed. This isn’t coincidence, it’s a pattern. Grocery stores and pharmacies do not abandon stable, safe neighborhoods. They leave when theft, vandalism, and employee safety become non-negotiable liabilities.
Urbana’s policy response has been the same for years: deny the root problem, avoid enforcement, and double down on ideology. The city expands subsidized housing without enforcing standards, weakens consequences for repeat offenders, and then acts surprised when investment evaporates. This isn’t compassion, it’s negligence.
The failure extends directly into the school system. My kids attend private school because I will not allow them to attend Urbana’s failed public schools. That decision costs my family real money, but it’s the rational response to a district suffering from chronic underperformance, discipline problems, and policy paralysis. Families shouldn’t have to buy their way out of a broken system, but in Urbana, they do.
These policies produce predictable outcomes. Higher-income families leave. Tax base erodes. Businesses refuse to invest. Food deserts expand. Pharmacies disappear. City leaders respond with more rhetoric and less accountability.
I’ve lived in Urbana for over 30 years. I’ve watched this decline happen step by step, policy by policy. Before my children reach high school, I am moving my family out. I will not entrust their safety, education, or future to a city government that refuses to confront reality.
This isn’t controversial. It’s observable. And until Urbana’s leadership prioritizes public safety, school accountability, and enforceable standards over ideological posturing, the outcome will remain exactly the same: continued decline.