A community survey aims to show whether Saginaw city residents would support a closer-to-home grocery alternative to the suburban megastores.
To judge from the turnout at an initial public meeting, the interest level appears to be strong.
Neighborhood group leaders filled the City Hall council chambers Tuesday to learn more.
From a $52 million federal ARPA grant for anti-poverty aid, City Council members have allocated $1 million for a subsidized Food Club, based on a Grand Rapids model, and another $1 million for other “food access” concepts still under study, ranging from expanded pantries and soup kitchens to attempting to lure a Wal-Mart or Meijer that generally stick to the suburbs.
The survey and more hearings are slated through Thanksgiving, and a report to the council is due in December from Public Policy Associates, a Lansing-based research and evaluation firm that is assisting the Guidehouse ARPA consultants.
Mayor Pro Tem Annie Boensch and Councilman George Copeland have volunteered to coordinate the “food access” ARPA segment, both noting a main concern that residents repeatedly express is the lack of a city-based supermarket, other than the medium-sized Giant on the East Side, in Sheridan Park, and Save A Lot on the West Side, north of the courthouse. Councilman Bill Ostash also attended.
One obvious option is to pursue a big-box operation. Residents had little to say on this, figuring that if a major player was interested in Saginaw, fine, but it hasn’t happened so far. In fact, there was some sentiment against the supermarkets like Kroger as unreliable fixtures, similar to Walgreens and Rite-Aid recently on the drug-store aspect.
Food Club first at table
The big proposal is pursuit of a Food Club outlet, led by Tina Swanton, formerly from the YMCA and now program manager for the Michigan Health Improvement Alliance. The statewide initiative is, “Access and Quality of Food.” She got started in 2017, four years prior to ARPA, when she enlisted with the Food Access Collaboration Team of Saginaw (FACTS), a group of 25 agency partners that serve people in need.
Swanton states, “When FACTS started, the main purpose was to have regular conversations to help reduce duplications of services. FACTS believes that no one should suffer from lack of food and that we can work together as a community to ensure this.”
The concept is similar to old-time food co-ops but with far-lower prices because they are subsidized. Low to moderate-income households would pay “sliding scale” fees in the range of $11 to $15 per month, in exchange for “points” determined by the number in the household. Patrons would select their own items, rather than receiving pre-packed boxes, with fewer points charged for healthier items, for example, spinach over snacks.
For example, this year’s federal poverty line for a family of four is $26,500, and in Saginaw County, 17 percent are below the standard. But when the max is set at double, or 200 percent, nearly half of families qualify.
This means a family of four earning $53,000 would pay $13 a month for 60 points, or $120 worth of food, with more food by comparison going to a lower-income household.
Meanwhile, the community kitchen would help partners to expand programs, such as cooking or canning classes. The kitchen would allow for samples to be prepped, for people to try a variety of produce before selecting.
Food Club supporters first aimed for an inner-city “food desert” location and considered the abandoned Civitan Center, but Swanton said citywide residents urged them not to pick a specific neighborhood because customers from other neighborhoods may become discouraged and non-supportive.
As a result, plans call for construction as early as next spring in the central parks system, across from the YMCA on Fordney Street near the old wave pool location.
Critics say that in the attempt to avoid any hard feelings over location, the site winds up somewhat isolated from all neighborhoods. Supporters note that a STARS route already heads along Fordney, and that the bottom line would be sharply reduced prices.
In addition to $1 million from city ARPA, Food Club has reaped $500,000 from county ARPA, $1.8 million from foundations and another $450,000 from other sources for a combined $3.75 million, which is three-quarters of the way toward a $5 million goal.
Look at empty buildings?
Several of Tuesday’s participants said existing vacant schools could be considered. Inner-city locations could include Houghton Elementary or Central (Ruben Daniels) Middle, while a more middle-of-town site would be Longfellow Elementary. On the West Side, Jerome Elementary now is an ISD Head Start center, while Fuerbringer is being remodeled for senior care.
Other residents asked if a plan could be developed to help neighborhood stores reduce their prices via cooperative buying, so that affordable groceries would become available within walking distance from homes and apartments. Also mentioned was home delivery service, and/or a mobile truck that would rotate to various sites.
Sticking to basics, emphasis was placed on not overlooking the needs of established soup kitchens and pantries, because some people will stay with tradition while shying away from new approaches. Leaders of the Hunger Solutions Center, which combines Hidden Harvest with the East Side Soup Kitchen, did not receive ARPA votes for $500,000 to expand, or for at least some seed money.
A goal of transforming vacant lots and land into urban farm gardens was mentioned, but was not discussed in more detail. Among the city’s neighborhood associations, Houghton-Jones features a 20-year-old Youth Farm Stand that is operated and cultivated by teens, with adult oversight.
Here is the survey: https://www.research.net/r/SaginawFoodSurvey_City. The info remains anonymous, with ID requested only if someone wishes to qualify for one of 20 gift-card prizes valued at $50. Local grant-writers could use the data to demonstrate a need for more funding, especially from private and foundation sources.
