BOSTON — A former city-owned lot on Radcliffe Street in Boston's Dorchester neighborhood has become an 11,000-square-foot "food forest" where residents can grow and harvest fresh food, city officials said.

Ryo's Food Forest Park was developed by the Boston Food Forest Coalition, a nonprofit community land trust, and backed by the Mayor's Office of Housing's Grassroots Open Space Program, according to the city's Office of Housing. The office joined the coalition, neighbors and community partners to celebrate the park's opening.

Food forests use fruit trees, shrubs and other perennial plants to create green spaces that produce food. The Dorchester park has fruit trees, edible shrubs, perennial plants, raised garden beds, walking paths and seating areas, along with solar lighting, irrigation and a maintenance shed, the city said. A path links Norwell and Radcliffe streets, and gathering areas are meant for community events and educational activities.

The park is named for Ryo Kawashima Coleman, whom the city described as a mother and gardener known for sharing plants with her neighbors along Radcliffe Street. Neighbors voted on the name after four years of advocacy with the Greater Four Corners Action Coalition and a community-led design process with the food forest coalition, the city said.

Money for the project came from the Grassroots Open Space Program, the Community Preservation Act, a private foundation and the coalition itself. The city did not say how much the park cost.

A neighborhood stewardship committee, backed by coalition staff, will help run and maintain the park, and residents will take part in seasonal workdays for planting, harvesting and upkeep, according to the city.

Chief of Housing Sheila A. Dillon credited the Harvard-Washington-Norwell Neighborhood Association and the coalition for the transformation of the lot.

"This park is about more than growing food," said Orion Kriegman, the coalition's executive director. "It's about growing relationships, sharing knowledge, and giving residents a place where they can connect with the land and with one another."

This brief was drafted by AI from a public agency or political press release and published by The New England Signal. Why we use AI for stories like this one.