The award-winning Bowmanville Community Garden in Lincoln Square will double in size through an ordinance approved today by the Chicago City Council.

Located next to Rosehill Cemetery, the garden will be expanded onto an adjacent, 5,000-square foot site at 5384 N. Bowmanville Ave. The ordinance provides authority for the City of Chicago to acquire the site for public use.

"Residents throughout Chicago have demonstrated how public gardens help to foster neighborhood cooperation and beautification. This site creates an even larger opportunity for the residents of Bowmanville to advance these ideals," Mayor Daley said.

The Bowmanville Community Organization has tended the garden since 1996. In 2009, the garden won first place in Mayor Daley's regional "Landscape Awards."

The ordinance is the first stage of a multi-phase ownership and management arrangement. The site is being acquired from CorLands, a not-for-profit open space land trust, and will be transferred to NeighborSpace, which provides liability insurance for the Bowmanville Community Organization and other gardening groups throughout the city.

As part of the expansion project, a two-story residential building and garage on the site will be demolished. Approximately $350,000 in Tax Increment Financing (TIF) funds from the Devon/Western TIF District will pay for the acquisition and preparation work.