Seeking expression of interest for garden management at Source

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Part-time manager/entrepreneur - Urban Food Garden Demonstration Site.

Source Community Wholefoods Coop invites expressions of interest from persons interested in
developing and managing the sustainable food production display garden adjacent to our food retail
premises in Sandy Bay, Hobart.

The primary objective for this garden is the demonstration of viable
urban food production and the provision of hands-on education to community members, on an
accessible and financially sustainable basis. If you have horticultural experience at a managerial
level, as well as experience working with volunteers we would like to hear from you. We particularly
invite inquiries from persons with an entrepreneurial nature who would be comfortable with sharing
risks and rewards. The size of the opportunity is largely up to you, but we would expect a minimum
commitment of around 6hrs per week. The board has identified four potential models for the
management of the garden and these are briefly described below – alternative models will
considered if put forward. Please send expressions of interest to source_wholefoods@gmail.com.
 

Potential Models

1) Standard part time employment of manager
If this situation is to be considered, Source would expect a detailed plan to be formulated and
submitted by the applicant, detailing how sufficient income would be derived from the garden to
cover at least 125% of the cost of employing the staff member. This application should be backed up
by reliable third party data to support claims about the income potential of the site. The timing of
such an appointment would also depend on the financial position of Source’s retail operation.

2) Sharing risk and reward
Under this model the garden manager/entrepreneur would agree to take on some financial risk in
exchange for the opportunity to earn a higher income. For example, if the applicant believes a gross
profit of $10,000 per annum can be generated from the site, Source is willing to negotiate around
how this income is shared. In order for this model to work it is expected that the applicant would
also be able to leverage value from exposure to our 400+ members and proximity to the University

3) Develop a not-for-profit entity
There may be an opportunity to develop a more independent non-for-profit entity around our
garden operation – probably focused on education. One possible avenue for funding is mentioned in
the state governments ‘social inclusion’ strategy http://communitygarden.org.au/tas_strategy . The
applicant would work with the Source board to develop a publically funded project at the Source
site, the scope of which is yet to be defined. The Source site is ideally positioned to make a
significant contribution to the social inclusion strategy and we believe it would be a strong
contender for community garden related grants.

4) Continue with, and further develop the existing volunteer management approach.
The Source garden is currently management by a small group of volunteers. This group of volunteers
has limited gardening experience but does a great job in keeping the garden tidy and productive at a
basic level. While this model can continue indefinitely there is significant scope for a committed and
experienced volunteer to create a leading role for themselves through the further development of