Urban gardens in Milwaukee public spaces

Milwaukee is a big part of the urban garden scene.  Not the biggest, but we have Will Allen and Growing Power who have sparked garden movement which has been far reaching.  The vegetable beds in front of the municipal building are planted and maintained through city resources, but it was Allen who got the project going with his design.
Milwaukee is one of hundreds of cities facing the foreclosure crisis which has left many homes empty.  Banks may or may not maintain these properties.  Sometimes people just walk away from homes.  Sometimes these empty homes fall into disrepair.  Sometimes empty homes attract scrap collectors and the valuable pipes, wiring, siding, and even vintage woodwork is taken from the homes.  Empty homes become empty shells.  If these homes become part of city owned properties, they may end up demolished if found beyond repair.  The empty lots are returned to a seeded state and then it becomes my job to monitor them.
There are almost 3,000 vacant lots within the City of Milwaukee.  Most of them are in central city locations, sometimes whole blocks of parcels have become one big vacant lot.  People use these lots for all kinds of unattractive things which makes our job essential to keeping them from becoming garbage heaps filled with weeds.  The handful of inspectors who watch over these lots are in charge of making sure the garbage is picked up and large items taken away by sanitation crews.  Inspectors also make sure contractors are keeping up with mowing during the summer and snow removal on adjacent public walks during the winter.  If there are trees and shrubs left on the property after demolition, the health and safety of those plants also has to be watched.  I am one of the chosen few who get to keep track of vacant lot activity.
There is one aspect of vacant lots in the City of Milwaukee program that is closer to my heart than picking up trash.  The city has a garden permit process which allows people or groups to obtain a permit to use the lot for urban gardens.  There are several lots within the city on publicly and privately owned parcels.  Some are big and some are many are small.  They provide a neighborhood a place to gather and grow fresh vegetable and fruit within walking distance of their homes and apartments.  See link below for how to obtain a permit for a lot in your neighborhood.
I do not know the total number of gardens on city lots, but I do know that out of the 174 lots I watch, there are six lots being used as garden permit lots.  Some are just adjacent homeowners just getting a few things directly in the ground. Without a soil test, this is not the recommended route if you are growing food crops due to residual heavy metals from prior construction materials.  Most are groups that put raised beds and fresh soil for growing edible crops.  
There are a few of the lots which also sponsor health and wellness classes on sites.  I have seen art classes for kids and yoga for adults.  Some of the larger community gardens have cooking lessons to teach people how to use the vegetables they have grown.  The parcels that were once a blight in the neighborhood have become positive places for the community to come together.  I wish more of these parcels were being used for this purpose.  
If you are interested in knowing more about obtaining a permit for a city owned vacant lot go to:

http://city.milwaukee.gov/CityRealEstate/Neighborhood-Gardens.htm

I hope to see more vacant lots as a positive place in our community.

City garden on Burnham St near Frank Lloyd Wright homes in Milwaukee