Calling the imminent demise of a poorly thought out, overly monetized - likely more than $2 million in public dollars by now - hydroponics farm in Kimberley Park a mercy killing might be hyperbole. But only just.
When the nonprofit contracted by the city to run the thing indicated Monday that the $240,000 annual cost was, according to a city budget document, being "updated," the coda to the infamous wet tomato farm was all but written.
"It was ill-conceived from the beginning," said Winston-Salem Councilmember Robert Clark, one of the few voices of fiscal reason from the jump, "and I still struggle with it."
Not for much longer, though. Per HOPE of Winston-Salem, a smart nonprofit established to feed hungry children, its leaders were "recently informed by a high ranking city official that the facility will need to be repurposed as a revenue source for the city and that there are simply no funds available for the project."
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