Village of Algonquin Grows 900 Pounds of Food at Wastewater Treatment Plant

The Village of Algonquin recently concluded harvesting vegetables planted in garden beds at the Wastewater Treatment Facility, and this year's crop totaled 900 pounds. 

Last May, volunteers from Cub Scout Pack 368 and planted vegetable seedlings in prepared beds on the property of the Wastewater Treatment Plant, located on Route 31. The seedlings were grown by Jacobs High School students in the school's greenhouse last spring. 

Once planted, the gardens were maintained by volunteers from both the village and the local food pantry.

The resulting 900 pounds of vegetables were donated to the Algonquin-Lake in the Hills Interfaith Food Pantry to help people in need. 

This is the second year the village has hosted a garden site to help support the Algonquin-Lake in the Hills Interfaith Food Pantry, which is located at 1113 Pyott Road in Lake in the Hills. 
 
"This partnership is a real win for the community," said Village President John Schmitt.  "We are able to utilize idle land at one of our facilities to grow vegetables and help the food pantry carry out their mission."
 
As part of the most recent expansion of the Algonquin Wastewater Treatment Facility, the design for the site called for landscaping utilizing perennial vines to screen concrete walls at the site. 

During the planning stage, it was suggested to utilize the area as a vertical garden and grow vegetables for the food pantry. The initial vegetable garden design and construction was guided by food pantry volunteer and master gardener Laurie Selpien.
 
To date, nearly 2,000 pounds of vegetables grown at the Algonquin Wastewater Treatment Facility have been donated to the Algonquin-Lake in the Hills Interfaith Food Pantry, with an estimated value of $3,000. 


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