Hope Grows
BHITC’s Urban Agriculture Initiative in CFSY is Blooming
What began as a vision to transform vacant lots in Cleveland's Clark-Fulton & Stockyards (CFSY) neighborhood has bloomed into a thriving urban agriculture initiative. Hope Grows is about more than growing fresh food. Through this initiative, Building Hope in the City is cultivating leaders, strengthening neighborhoods, promoting healthy living, and creating spaces where neighbors can connect and communities can thrive.
Planting Seeds of Hope
As BHITC acquired vacant and underutilized properties throughout the neighborhood, Hope Grows emerged as a way to restore these spaces from blight to beauty. For Hope Grows Coordinator Luis Luna, the work is rooted in both community and faith.
Luis, a lifelong Stockyards resident, first became involved with BHITC as a volunteer in 2019. While working for the City of Cleveland maintaining vacant lots, he began caring for BHITC-owned lots throughout the neighborhood. In 2022, he was hired to launch and coordinate Hope Grows, combining his agribusiness background with a deep commitment to the neighborhood he calls home.
Luis sees Hope Grows as a reflection of Jeremiah 29, where God's people are instructed to plant gardens and seek the prosperity of their city.
"When you touch the soil, see volunteers working together, and watch something grow where there was once nothing, it brings hope," Luis says.
Putting Down Roots
Today, Luis oversees a growing network of community agriculture sites. The initiative began with BHITC's first microfarm on West 61st Street, made possible through a partnership with the West 58th Street Church of God. In 2023, BHITC assumed Envision Cleveland’s West 43rd Street Community Garden, where neighbors can rent garden plots while receiving water, soil, and support throughout the growing season.
Hope Grows also manages several neighborhood orchards featuring peaches, apples, pears, plums, pawpaws, and figs. Located throughout the neighborhood, these orchards increase access to fresh fruit while creating shared spaces that bring people together and strengthen the community.
In 2025, Rally CLE volunteers helped revitalize a long-vacant lot on West 35th Street, laying the groundwork for renewed use. In 2026, a greenhouse was installed, allowing Hope Grows to extend both spring and fall growing seasons. This expansion is expected to increase annual output by roughly 100 lbs of additional produce.
Another abandoned property on Frontier Avenue is being reimagined as a flower field and community garden through partnerships with Metro West Community Development Organization, Councilwoman Jasmin Santana, and Restivo Excavating.
"God keeps bringing the next step into existence through partners," Luis says. "When people show up and invest in the vision, it motivates us to keep moving forward."
Nurturing Healthy Families
In 2026, Hope Grows expanded its impact through the launch of the Eating Well Family Cohort. Participating families gather monthly for hands-on learning focused on nutrition, gardening, and healthy meal preparation.
Led by volunteer dietitian Annie Chaisson and local chefs, families learn practical skills such as reading nutrition labels, growing food at home, and preparing healthy meals using fresh produce harvested from Hope Grows gardens.
“Working with Hope Grows is a way to use my background to participate in God's redemptive work in the world, bearing witness to the hope of the gospel through acts of justice, compassion, and faithful service,” Annie says. “I am thankful to be able to engage with neighbors and make new friends through this ministry.”
By involving both parents and children, the program unites families and encourages healthy habits that can last for generations.
“The Family Cohort aims to share practical knowledge based in community gardens, cooking, and nutrition education,” Annie explains. “These practical tools are an avenue to strengthen communities, promote human dignity, and encourage faithful stewardship of the resources God has entrusted to us.”
Sowing New Possibilities
Hope Grows is deepening its foundation through an advisory committee of local leaders. This group includes individuals with backgrounds in architecture, nutrition, and urban agriculture who help guide thoughtful decisions as the initiative expands.
This spring, Hope Grows and Cleveland Roots partnered on a community plant fundraiser, providing affordable plants and gardening supplies while helping to support future programming. The event also served as an early step toward exploring sustainable social enterprise opportunities such as seasonal plant sales that can help expand the initiative's long-term impact.
Beyond CFSY, the model is beginning to spread. In 2026, Hope Alliance Bible Church in Maple Heights partnered with Hope Grows to launch its own microfarm ministry, receiving training, materials, and support to create a space for food production, education, and community engagement. For Rev. Ron Morrison, the partnership answered a prayer: “Years ago, we were given a double plot of land only a few yards away from the church. We have been paying just to keep the grass cut, while praying about ways to do something that would bless the community.” When Hope Grows introduced the church to the possibilities of urban agriculture, the path forward became clear. “We knew it was exactly what we needed.”
BHITC's urban agriculture efforts have been blessed by ongoing support from Credit First National Association, Sears-Swetland Family Foundation, Cleveland Clinic, Cyrus Eaton Foundation, Cleveland Foundation and East 66th Street Services. We are deeply thankful for their investment in this work! As Hope Grows continues to expand, each new partnership strengthens a shared vision for healthier, more connected neighborhoods.
