Healthy Food

We provide financing to help build new supermarkets and food pantries in New York City’s food deserts because access to affordable, quality food is critical to building strong communities.

Far too many New Yorkers live in food deserts -- underserved neighborhoods where residents lack easy access to affordable, healthy food, particularly fresh produce. These neighborhoods are often home to convenience stores and bodegas, but few full-service supermarkets. Residents can be forced to take multiple buses just to find reasonably priced milk, bread, and fruit. This is especially difficult for seniors or those with young children.

Local supermarkets have now become more than just places to buy food in New York City.  They are important economic engines and the bedrock of food security for millions of families. However, bridging the gap between underserved communities and the fresh food they need often requires capital.

Our work includes financing the construction of Food Bazaar’s new supermarket in the East New York section of Brooklyn. We’ve also provided capital for the construction of the first Wegman’s supermarket in New York City – located adjacent to over 12,000 public housing residents along Flushing Avenue in Brooklyn.

In New York City today, one in three adults and nearly half of families with children experience food insecurity. Visits to the city’s food pantries are currently at record high levels with no signs of easing up. For many, food pantries have become a critical tool to supplement inadequate wages and manage the challenges of living in an expensive city.

We’ve financed the construction of Make the Road New York’s new community center in Queens which provides food to approximately 50,000 individuals per year.