Things I Like - Chicago

This is taking the ‘farm to table’ concept about as far as it will go. Uncommon Ground, a restaurant with locations in Wrigleyville and Edgewater, has a certified organic rooftop farm. In fact, it’s the only certified organic ‘rooftop’ farm in the United States. The farm, which sits atop the Edgewater restaurant was constructed and opened last summer – they held the Farm Dedication and Ribbon Cutting Ceremony last weekend.

The organic farm boasts a grocery list of produce, from Nardello Peppers to Black Prince Tomatoes, which fuel the restaurant below. For 17 years Uncommon Ground has upheld a farm to table mentality, building relationships with farmers from the Great Lakes region who follow sustainable and organic methods. In 2007 the owners of Uncommon Ground, Helen and Michael Cameron, decided to expand and in finding the second home for their restaurant at 1401 W. Devon they were inspired to bring local food even closer to home. Not only do they now grow vegetables on the roof, they also employ 5 solar panels that heat up to 70% of the water for the restaurant, house 2 beehives that this year produced over 40 pounds of honey, and teach urban agriculture classes to the local Waldorf school 3rd graders. The rooftop has been busy since mid-summer of 2008 when the construction finished and the farm opened its planter boxes for planting and eventual harvest.
~Uncommon Ground

Of course, Chicago is also home to the country’s first rooftop garden on a municipal building – City Hall. The garden was

…conceived as a demonstration project - part of the City's Urban Heat Island Initiative - to test the benefits of green roofs and how they affect temperature and air quality. The garden consists of 20,000 plants of more than 100 species, including shrubs, vines and two trees. The plants were selected for their ability to thrive in the conditions on the roof, which is exposed to the sun and can be windy and arid. Most are prairie plants native to the Chicago region.
~City of Chicago

It’s all part of the city’s Green Roof program, an initiative championed by Mayor Daley as part of the overall approach to environmentally friendly community infrastructure. Aside from being nice to look at, why are green roofs considered environmentally friendly? Per the city's website, green roofs improve air quality, conserve energy, reduce storm water runoff and help reduce the urban heat island effect. So we get beauty and environmental benefits.

According to the Mayor’s office, there were over 250 green roofs in Chicago in October 2006, just 1 year after launching the Green Roof Project. Wouldn’t it be amazing to look out from the top of the Sears Tower in 10 years and see a city topped with roof gardens?