The Launch of Southern Exposure City Farms

Tomatoes and padron peppers.
Credit SoExCityFarms facebook page.

There is always room at the top. – DANIEL WEBSTER

With a view of downtown Rochester, juicy heirloom tomatoes, dainty microgreens, pungent herbs and other seasonal fruits and vegetables are currently cultivating on a rooftop of a parking garage – A culmination of creeds led by Laura Fox, Marty O’Sullivan (owner of Rochester-area food truck and catering company Marty’s Meats), Paul Koecheler and Andre Linares (both also of Marty’s Meats).

With intentions of purveying local restaurants with City-grown, garden-fresh organic produce, Southern Exposure City Farms is the first of its kind in Rochester to utilize a once-vacant roof for urban agriculture.

The project is more than just a food supplier. Future plans include pop-up farm stands for public consumption.

In the meantime, if you're thinking of starting your own vegetable garden, Laura – who has a background in organic commercial farming – will come to your home to consult with you on the process via their Backyard Harvest Services.

This is just the beginning of an exciting and progressive project not only in the food scene but for downtown Rochester.

You can follow them on Twitter (@SoExCityFarms) and Facebook and stay tuned for more farm-freshness from SoEx coming soon!