Urban homesteaders put down roots in KC neighborhood

These urban homesteaders are for the most part white 20- to 40-somethings. Most as well are members of the Rock, a nondenominational Christian church founded in 1999 with loosely affiliated networks of house churches in Kansas, Missouri, Montana, Wyoming, Texas, Ohio, Michigan and North Carolina.

Hoop house made of arched PVC pipes

Candy Fields stands inside a hoop house made of arched PVC pipes and plywood covered with plastic sheeting that intensifies the sun’s rays. Within minutes she is drenched with sweat, however her voice remains cheerful as Jason points his iPhone, which is rigged with a single-reflex lens, to shoot a video.

Jason Fields’ only previous agriculture-related experience was as the owner of a successful lawn-care business that he recently sold. Butler recently moved his family into Lykins and agrees most of what he and Fields know about urban farming has been gleaned from information on the Internet.

“Guys were doing this sort of stuff back in the ’80s when there were nevertheless rotary phones,” Butler says, “nevertheless it wasn’t as easy to share information until the advent of social media.”

“It was hard to be the first one,” Kubicina recalls. “However once we were here, I had a surprising amount of peace. Nothing is as scary as it seems. We love it. This is our home.”

Van Kirk is 21 and unmarried. He’s rehabbing his first house with his dad, Bill Van Kirk, a Rock member who lives and runs a business in Olathe. Kyle has never rehabbed a house, so he winds up spending a lot of time standing around watching others show him construction basics.

The random gunshots

Despite the random gunshots, Candy Fields has never been afraid to live in Lykins: “When God calls you somewhere, he’ll protect you.”

The lawn-care business he started when he was 13 had not only bought him a car at 16, it had as well taught him that money makes more money. Jason orchestrated extravagant bashes, spending $1,500 upfront, at that time selling tickets and making a profit. “However at the end of the day, I would wander off, and I would just have these moments with God,” he says.

Fernando, a shy 9-year-old who lives across the street from the church, colors with crayons. His 16-year-old sister, Mayra, brought him to the class. She fiddles with her cellphone.

Fields and Van Kirk try to strike up a conversation by asking Mayra how her quinceneara ceremony went. She perks up slightly and on her phone pulls up a picture of the formal white dress she wore for the traditional Hispanic party celebrating her entrance into womanhood at 15.

The East Patrol is one of the busiest in the city

The East Patrol is one of the busiest in the city. That means vandalism calls often get lost in the race to deal with more violent crimes. Days previously, Jason Fields recorded a video on his iPhone as two guys hauled a metal grease trap away from the abandoned Chinese-Mexican buffet on 12th Street. In the meantime, scrap metalers have stolen the siding and gutters from homes during the occupants were at work.