City of Wilmington issued the following announcement on Oct. 6.
Food insecurity is an issue that plagues one in five people in New Hanover County, but the City of Wilmington took steps to change that. City leaders, along with representatives of Feast Down East, Northside Food Cooperative, and the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina, announced an initial commitment of $200,000 from the American Rescue Plan Act funding to combat food insecurity and work toward eliminating food deserts in the city.
“Local communities have suffered from food insecurity and residents have had to live in a food desert, with limited access to a grocery store,” Wilmington Mayor Bill Saffo said. “Through the American Rescue Plan funding, we can get resources to the people who need them through the people who can deliver those services efficiently and effectively. Today’s financial commitment builds on the city’s ongoing contributions to local agencies who are already doing important work in this space.”
The city will allocate $75,000 to Feast Down East to help expand the non-profit’s mobile market and $125,000 to the Northside Food Cooperative to improve access to affordable, nutritious food in Wilmington’s Northside, a USDA identified food desert.
“We’re really trying to bring our community voices in to make a difference and to make a change,” Cierra Washington Strategic Outreach & Partnership Coordinator of the Northside Food Co-op said during the press conference. “…. This is a different model. It’s community run. It’s democratic. We want to make sure we are empowering our community. I think it’s really amazing the city is taking the time to invest in the Northside and the Southside. I’m excited to see what we can all continue to do together.”
Awards are granted to Feast Down East and the Northside Food Co-op in accordance with U.S. Treasury ARP guidance and NC General Statute authorization. Funding to combat food insecurity is part of the city’s commitment to invest $9 million of ARPA funding in economic and community assistance.
“We’re thrilled to be here today and excited to partner with the city to expand our mobile market efforts into the Southside on a broader level than we’ve been able to do with the resources we’ve had thus far,” Feast Down East Executive Director Cara Stretch said.
The City of Wilmington received an approximately $26 million allocation from the American Rescue Plan Act, signed into law March 11, 2021. The money will be disbursed to the city through two installments of approximately $13 million in the next two years. The funds must be obligated by Dec. 31, 2024. The city received the first installment of $13 million earlier this year.
Original source can be found here.
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