A Hillsboro nonprofit that trains young people on a working organic farm will use a $3 million Metro grant to buy the land it has leased since its founding in 2011.

Metro Council voted July 22, to award Working Theory Farm the single largest individual grant in a $26 million parks-and-nature package distributed to 42 projects across the Portland region.

The grant will allow the South Hillsboro nonprofit to purchase the farmland it currently leases, permanently preserving it as what Metro's press release calls a "farm park" for habitat, nature access, and community programs in a rapidly urbanizing part of the city.

"This wraps up a very successful day of supporting our regional partners in conservation and access to nature," Metro Council President Juan Carlos González said at the special session held at Concord Community Center in Milwaukie.

The award comes from Metro's Large-Scale Community Visions program, funded by a $475 million parks-and-nature bond that voters in Multnomah, Clackamas, and Washington counties approved in November 2019 with 66.8% support.

Working Theory Farm was founded by Justin Green, a former public high school teacher, and incorporated as an Oregon nonprofit in 2019. The farm operates on 24 acres just inside Portland's Urban Growth Boundary.

Through its Transitional Employment Program, the nonprofit has employed more than 70 youth ages 14 to 24, many of whom have been affected by the juvenile justice system, homelessness, or developmental disabilities. The farm has donated more than 90,000 pounds of organic produce to families experiencing food insecurity.

The grant did not come without local groundwork. Hillsboro's Parks and Recreation Commission voted 7-0 on May 4 to recommend the City Council enter a memorandum of understanding with Working Theory Farm and support the Metro grant application.

The City Council took up Resolution No. 2920 on May 19 to authorize the application, and Metro's subsequent award of the grant confirms the city followed through.

Not every Metro councilor supported the full award. Councilor Gerritt Rosenthal proposed diverting funds from Working Theory Farm and the Bird Alliance of Oregon's east Portland project to fully fund a $3.9 million greenway request from Tigard.

Tigard Mayor Yi-Kang Hu told the council the reduced $1.5 million award would leave a $2.3 million gap large enough to make the project unfeasible. The council rejected Rosenthal's proposal.

Hillsboro also received a separate $116,000 Metro grant to develop an accessible nature play area at Evergreen Park. No timeline has been announced for the Working Theory Farm land purchase closing.