On June 20, 2023, we were proud to join a broad coalition of community gardeners and Philadelphia elected officials to announce that the City of Philadelphia will soon acquire U.S. Bank liens on dozens of community gardens, assuring that these lots are protected from being sold at sheriff’s sale. Our staff attorney Sari Bernstein spoke at a press conference held at Iglesias Garden. These privately-held liens have saddled gardens with burdensome third-party debt since the City sold delinquent tax liens in 1997. This major victory for the preservation of green space in the city was covered by WHYY and the Philadelphia Inquirer.

For years, the Law Center has advocated for City action to address the threat these liens pose to vital community spaces. We are heartened that the city will soon take a major step towards making this goal a reality, and we look forward to working with the Land Bank, the Administration and City Council to finish the job by transferring title for these parcels to the longtime garden stewards who have stepped up to care for the land.

Remarks from Law Center staff attorney Sari Bernstein

Across Philadelphia’s working class neighborhoods, community gardeners revitalize and reclaim abandoned vacant parcels, providing beacons for residents to come together to grow fresh food, seek shade and peace, and for neighbors to gather and play. Studies back up what we intuitively know to be true: cleaning and greening vacant properties results in significant reductions in perceived safety risks and actual violent crimes like gun violence. They also help alleviate the impacts of climate change by creating cooling effects in blocks otherwise densely packed with concrete and buildings.

That’s why at the Public Interest Law Center, we work to protect and preserve community-built green space through our Garden Justice Legal Initiative, providing legal support, policy research, community education and organizing.

We’re standing in one of these vital neighborhood spaces, on a lot that was once left untended and uncared for. Land stewards like those here at Iglesias Garden have invested precious resources to turn neglected vacant land into beautiful community spaces like these, filling in for absentee property owners or land speculators.

“This week, because of the advocacy of a broad coalition of community garden partners and the city’s substantial financial investment, 88 gardens in primarily Black and Brown neighborhoods will be protected from sheriff sale to the highest bidder.”

But since 1997, many gardens have faced a looming threat, due to pre-existing outstanding third-party debt. This week, because of the advocacy of a broad coalition of community garden partners and the city’s substantial financial investment, 88 gardens in primarily Black and Brown neighborhoods will be protected from sheriff sale to the highest bidder. This victory would not have happened without the tireless work of everyone you see here today and the leadership of the Kenny administration, Council President Clarke, Councilmembers Kendra Brooks and Jamie Gauthier, and their incredible staffs.

“The city should be commended for making sure that what community gardeners have built is not lost because of a debt they did not incur and do not owe.”

The city should be commended for making sure that what community gardeners have built is not lost because of a debt they did not incur and do not owe. We look forward to working with the Land Bank, the Administration and City Council to finish the job by transferring title for these parcels to the longtime garden stewards who have stepped up to care for the land. Together, in the neighborhoods that need it most, we can protect and preserve the beautiful spaces that have bloomed against all odds.

Thank you.