ST. LOUIS — Volunteers from near and far were forced to dismantle a community garden in north St. Louis on Saturday.
Nick Speed's non-profit UJIMA has used the land outside the Clay Community Center on North 14th St. to grow produce and flowers and provide access to food, education, and jobs for people in the area.
Speed shared that he received an eviction notice from Saint Louis Public Schools (SLPS) and needed to be off the lot by 5 p.m. Saturday.
The Clay Community Center is inside of the former Clay Elementary School. Saint Louis University (SLU), which UJIMA partners with, leases the space from Saint Louis Public Schools.
An email sent to Speed by a Saint Louis University professor explained that a canceled agreement between SLU and the school district is what led to the removal of not just UJIMA but several other non-profits the university partnered with.
According to the email, the district proposed a lease agreement to the university in late May that was just financially impossible for them.
"There was a conversation about raising the rent as well as having folks pay for the water damage in the building. So instead of coming back with a counter offer, giving us an opportunity to come up with a new MOU and a plan, they [SLPS] decided to just kick us out. We've made several attempts to reach out to the district, but they've gone radio silent," Speed said.
The garden has been a beacon of hope for the area overshadowed by dilapidated buildings and few grocery stores.
"We've hosted hundreds of young people here on the property, doing field trips [and] service learning activities. We've hosted our Teen Program, the Sunflower Institute here," Speed said.
Volunteers packed pallets into a van and removed plants and flowers from the ground.
"What you're seeing here is like years of work that Nick has put in with the company UJIMA. Putting in raised beds for the community. Putting in rows so people can plant food and flowers and suddenly being told you guys have a week to remove all of this. Yeah, it's pretty heartbreaking," said Yong Soo Kim, UJIMA's farm supervisor.
"It is a little devastating, I will say. Even our teens are feeling the feels. They put a lot of hard work into cultivating and building this," the program manager said.
A spokesperson for SLU sent the following statement Saturday afternoon:
SLU is deeply grateful for the work of our partners at the Clay Community Education Center. The University remains committed to supporting their efforts and is actively exploring new opportunities to continue our collaboration in ways that positively impact the community.
The St. Louis School Board's Vice President Matt Davis took to social media saying "(A) private university (that doles out millions of dollars in tax abatements) demands free rent and refuses to pay for significant damage it caused to a public building."
When 5 On Your Side reached out to Davis to see if he could elaborate, he referred us to the school district's spokesperson, who shared the response below.