Community Works

The Hawthorn Housing Land Trust supports neighborhood-led community projects that empower residents and neighbors to improve the places where they live. By sharing resources, skills, and mutual aid, these initiatives strengthen community connection while making neighborhoods healthier, more resilient, and more self-sustaining.

Projects may include community gardens that expand access to fresh food, cooperative bulk food purchasing to lower grocery costs, backyard chicken programs that support small-scale local food production, and volunteer home repair efforts that help maintain safe and stable housing. Residents are also encouraged to participate in watershed stewardship and other environmental efforts that protect local land, soil, and water.

Through these projects, Hawthorn Housing Land Trust helps create opportunities for neighbors to collaborate, build practical skills, and care for shared spaces—demonstrating how community stewardship can improve neighborhood conditions while strengthening long-term housing stability and local resilience.

The initiative has worked to convert vacant and underused land into productive urban permaculture sites, neighborhood gardens, and food forests, especially in areas facing food insecurity.

Vanderburgh County Soil & Water Conservation District for providing the cost-share grant for our critical watershed area, and selecting our Greenhouse Rain Water Conservation Project 2024 for funding and guidance!
This new conservation system attached to our existing greenhouse will collect 500 gallons per inch of rain and be filtered and used as irrigation inside of the greenhouse.
We highly recommend installing a barrel or two on your home, business, and garden. Here are the benefits:
- reduces stormwater runoff associated with flooding and erosion in our urbanized neighborhood
- reduce our demand on public water supply and an otherwise hefty utility bill
- prepare for times of drought (like our recent 39 days without rain!)
- Plants prefer rainwater! Rainwater contains fewer impurities and unwanted contaminants. Conventional tap water contains treatment chemicals, salts, and other minerals that can be harmful to soil and plants. Rainwater systems provide naturally soft water that is free of chemicals and other contaminants.
Now lets get some plants in this thing!

Vanderburgh County Soil & Water Conservation District provided a cost-share grant for our critical watershed area, and selected our Greenhouse Rain Water Conservation Project 2024 for funding and guidance. This new conservation system attached to our existing greenhouse will collect 500 gallons per inch of rain and be filtered and used as irrigation inside of the greenhouse.

We highly recommend installing a barrel or two on your home, business, and garden. Here are the benefits:

reduces storm water runoff associated with flooding and erosion in our urbanized neighborhood
reduce our demand on public water supply and an otherwise hefty utility bill
prepare for times of drought (like our recent 39 days without rain!)
plants prefer rainwater! Rainwater contains fewer impurities and unwanted contaminants. Conventional tap water contains treatment chemicals, salts, and other minerals that can be harmful to soil and plants. Rainwater systems provide naturally soft water that is free of chemicals and other contaminants.