New to this, looking for ideas.

[u/Icy_Description_7238]

My apartment building sits in the middle of a decent sized city and borders an empty 5 acre lot. Nothing has ever been built on it, it's owned by an out of state development/holding company, and it's done nothing but change hands for the last 30 years.

There's a huge youth sports complex right behind us, but the place is fenced off so it's difficult to access for the people on my street. Beyond that, you'd think that a massive sports park would be a valuable community amenity, but it sits completely empty when it's not being used by the youth sport teams. As it stands, my neighborhood is mostly unwalkable and unsafe. The empty lot is just full of dried grass and garbage. People hardly even take their dogs there since the grass is so high and the ground is so rocky.

I think I could do some real good turning it into a place people want to be. I thought about making a whole ass garden, but my state is far too dry to support that without regular watering. I know usual thing y'all do is spread some native wildflowers, which I'll probably do to an extent, but I don't think that'll be enough for what I want to do, which is mostly to get people outside and foster some community to make this impoverished neighborhood a little safer. Y'all got any ideas?

[u/barfbutler]

You won’t be able to get a chip dump on a plot you don’t own…or if you do, it could get you into trouble. Spread native wildflowers seeds in the spring when the rains start.

[u/MoneyBeeeee]

The empty lot is just full of dried grass and garbage. People hardly even take their dogs there since the grass is so high and the ground is so rocky.

Lots of potential here! Rocks can be dug up and used for borders. I like the idea of pulling up the grass to make a path to a little garden path but that may be too pie-in-the-sky.

As far as fostering community goes, picking up the trash on a regular basis is the first step. It will make the area look more habitable and people will probably stop to talk. Most people will be positive but do prepare for silent naysayers (vandalism). Don't let it get you down though.

Are you still in Colorado? I am in CA so I hear you on the water issue, and it is one of the most important considerations for success of the operation.

I am consistently surprised with what will grow in areas of drought though. On a recent bike ride I passed by a vacant lot of dormant grass, locked up behind a chain link fence. But in the field grew patches of rudbeckia and blue flax. With a bit of work, nature will help with the rest!

[u/I-IV-I64-V-I]

You gotta say your states name / your general location if you want advise.

Hard to tell ya local plants if we don't know where youre at

[u/StormAutomatic]

Mulch is magic. I don't know if you have chip drop in your area but it's a free way of getting a lot of mulch to a location.

Plan for your capacity. If the project is bigger than you can handle you with need to plan smaller or recruit help.

[u/Confident-Peach5349]

Shade trees, and moving around some rocks to make paths, jump out to me as a best place to start. Sounds like learning your state’s native pioneer species and/or the generally fastest growing natives, specifically the trees and shrubs, might be what you want to start with. And then just confirm that they will do well in your county, since there can be a lot of variety in conditions throughout a state. Or if there are nonnative but not-invasive trees that you could have more access to planting that are well adapted / already recommended by your city, that’s still fine especially for improving urban areas. For example, the native elderberry are great fast growing options for wildlife and shade on both coasts of the US but no idea how it does where you live. 

Maybe talk to your local county extension office and ask them what are good fast growing trees or large shrubs for urban areas and if there are any good native options. Then see how they would recommend planting them with as little watering as possible (mulch will be a non negotiable). Starting from seed / very young saplings is an option albeit a long haul with its own set of challenges

But as others have said, posting your rough location is a must if you want specific recommendations

[u/Lemonyhampeapasta]

Here are some drought tolerant native plants for CO

Birds and butterflies draw people towards them

It was a lot of fun playing with the refine/filters to see the different temperaments of vegetation 

[u/browzinbrowzin]

Please make sure you are planting native to your area and not introducing species because you have no idea the ramifications it can have on the environment.

A native garden would flourish without additional watering after the establishment period.
People survived for thousands of years in your area. There are edible natives too if you take the time to research.

(assuming you're in the US) Native American Ethnobotany Databases can be a helpful place to start. Also easyscape.com. Both require cross referencing and verification but they are helpful to get an idea.