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Historic East Village Inc. has been leading efforts to turn little-used Allen Park at Southeast Sixth and Allen streets in Des Moines into a community garden.

Interest in the project was strong at an initial meeting two weeks ago, said Jonathan Corbett, a landscape architect with Confluence Inc., and from that meeting, he teamed up with the Iowa chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects to design the space. A workshop last week established the vision, goals and design for the community garden, and Corbett expects initial design plans to be completed this week. By April 30, the newly formed Downtown Community Garden group plans to begin construction and planting of about 20 to 30 plots, with space for more than 100 plots in the future.

“This thing is moving pretty quickly for us,” Corbett said.

About 10 to 15 people have already signed up for the free plots, Corbett said. Don Tripp, director of the Des Moines Parks and Recreation Department, said interest has grown for this type of project as more people move downtown and don’t have the space for a garden, and society in general becomes more interested in environmentalism and sustainability. A similar park at 53rd Street and Franklin Avenue has a waiting list.

The city will provide water, mulch and initial tilling of the land. The group is looking for donated supplies. Tools will be housed in a shed created from a current restroom. The design could also incorporate the existing swing set and large cottonwood trees to maintain a park-like feel. The group is still determining the rules for gardening, especially whether to require all gardening to follow organic practices.

How long the park exists could depend on how active the community gets in the project. The park is located along the future extension of Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway. Tripp said the city may decide to sell the parcel once that goes through.