Where Produce is Scarce, Supermarkets Will Grow - NYT

Where Produce is Scarce, Supermarkets Will Grow - NYT

In Randy’s Grocery Corp., the small bodega above the Tremont Avenue subway station in the Bronx, the fresh produce pickings are slim. A dozen shriveled green peppers and a tray of limes and tomatoes sit under a dimly lit glass counter next to a crate of browning bananas.

The situation in nearby grocery stores and delis is little better -– shelves are stacked with potato chips, canned goods and soda bottles, while fruit and vegetable sections are hard to come by.

But the fresh produce situation in the neighborhood is expected to improve soon. The New York City Industrial Development Agency approved millions in tax and real estate benefits Tuesday for the development of two new supermarkets in the Bronx – one near Tremont Avenue and one in Norwood.

The projects are the first to be approved under the city’s Fresh Retail Expansion to Support Health program, known as FRESH, which encourages the establishment of neighborhood full-line grocery stores in low-income and underserved communities.

“Thanks to the FRESH program, we have the opportunity to help ensure that all New Yorkers have the food choices that for too long have been lacking in certain neighborhoods,” said the agency’s chairman, Seth W. Pinsky.

The program, announced by state and city officials last spring, claims to be the first in the nation to offer a combination of zoning and financial incentives to property owners, developers and grocery store operators in multiple neighborhoods.

About 700,000 New Yorkers are currently affected by diabetes, while three million are overweight or obese, according to the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. The FRESH program aims to reverse this health trend, which is most prevalent in areas underserved by supermarkets.

On Tuesday, the development agency, part of the city Economic Development Corporation, approved approximately $3 million in real estate and tax benefits for a Foodtown supermarket to be rebuilt and expanded on East 204th Street in Norwood, where a Foodtown burned down in December.

Western Beef will receive $5.6 million to replace and expand their current store on Park Avenue near the Tremont subway station. To qualify for FRESH benefits, both stores must provide a broad selection of fresh fruit, vegetables, meat and dairy products.

People in the neighborhood were, not surprisingly, happy to hear Tuesday’s news. “We need more fresh produce in this area,” said Yvonne Melendez, a mother of three who lives near Tremont Avenue. “It’s very difficult to eat healthily in the Bronx.”

In Norwood, at the end of the D train, “It’s difficult even to find simple things like fresh spinach or basil – and these are not out-of-this-world items,” said Yensi Madlonado, an environmental educator who lives in the neighborhood.

Construction on the 35,000-square-foot Western Beef is scheduled to start in the spring, while work on the 11,000-square-foot Foodtown is expected to start in the summer.

Low-income areas in Queens, Brooklyn and Manhattan have also been highlighted as target areas for the program.

At Tuesday’s meeting of the development agency, City Comptroller John Liu, an ex-oficio member of the board, voted against the supermarket projects and two other city subsidies that came up for final votes. He said that he did not have specific objections to the projects but had concerns about the process used by the Economic Development Corporation to choose candidates for funding.

Mr. Liu said that his staff would meet with officials of the development corporation to gain a better understanding of how the city decides which projects receive grants, loans and other financial assistance. At the least, he said, the city could do a better job of explaining that process to the public.

A spokesman for the development corporation said: “We’re confident that when the Comptroller meets with us, he’ll agree that our process is open and that our programs help businesses, including supermarkets, create jobs and grow in distressed neighborhoods.”