TIJUANA RIVER VALLEY
Jim Usita didn’t have to pay for anything he used to build his community garden his sink, flower pots, drip irrigation system, white picket fence, even his American flag décor.
“That wood came from McDonald’s. McDonald’s was renovating, so I asked if I could take that plywood and I made a flag out of it,” he said, chuckling.
The irony isn’t lost on the 59-year-old contractor from Chula Vista, who advocates for a slower, healthier way of life away from the hustle of the city and fast-food chains. Usita uses apps like OfferUp to find discarded items, and his work in the construction trades as a painter gives him access to material his clients are throwing away.