SCRANTON, Pa. — A man whose roots are in the Scranton area, wants to give residents a chance to put down their own.
Frank Dubas lives in Connecticut, but grew up in Jessup. When he saw a lot on Cedar Avenue in Scranton, an idea sprouted in his mind.
"I had a successful career and walked by this lot one day and I envisioned a community garden here. Actually, a community park garden," said Frank Dubas, New Canaan, CT.
Dubas made a significant financial contribution to see that it happened. The project's also received support from local and state leaders.
After two years of pandemic-related delays, it's beginning to take shape. Concrete workers, smoothing out the pathway that will become the entrance to the Garden of Cedar Community Park.
"It's actually going to be in the form of a maze where children or adults or whomever, could wander through the maze and return to the staging area. As they go through, there will be a number of plantings. The neighborhood residents will plant fruits and vegetables throughout the garden," explained Dubas.
Dubas hopes it blossoms into an area for connection and community growth, while addressing food insecurities in an area some consider a 'food desert.'
"It's a densely populated area where a number of people live in multi-family houses, apartments, and they don't have room to garden. What I'm attempting to do here is give them an opportunity to have a place to do it," said Dubas.
Dubas says he wants the framing work completed by the winter and he expects the park to open to the public for planting season next spring.
"It's a neighborhood that deserves something like this, I think. It's a wonderful little neighborhood in Scranton, the Cedar Avenue section. I love it and I hope everyone else will as well," said Dubas.
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