First funds approved from Healthy Fund Food for Birmingham grocer
The City of Birmingham will provide $200,000 from the Healthy Food Fund to Village Market grocery store in East Lake as part of an agreement approved by the city council on Tuesday, Nov. 5.
The agreement provides up to $865,000 total from the Healthy Food Fund and estimated tax rebates over the next 10 years. The Village Market store is located at 7737 Second Ave. South.
Village Market is the first recipient of Mayor Randall Woodfin’s administration’s Healthy Food Fund, which was established in May 2019.
The fund, which is part of the overall Neighborhood Revitalization Fund, is designed to offset the costs of opening grocery stores in areas of the city that have been designated by the USDA as food deserts. There are 149,000 Birmingham residents living in food deserts. The Woodfin administration is focused on changing that. The funding can help reduce distribution costs, ensure that stores can be sustained where food stamps are often used, and help grocers bear the costs of opening a new store.
The tax rebate enables the store owners to maintain all hires at the current location and upgrade facilities and resources (an estimated $1.2 million in upgrades). Store owners may also open additional stores in the city over the next two to three years.
The rebates are estimated at $665,000 over 10 years. Under the plan, the store would receive back 70% of its sales tax revenue or $80,000, whichever is less. For years five through seven, the rebate would be 60% of sales tax revenue or $65,000, whichever is less. For the final two years of the agreement, the store would receive back 50% of its sales tax revenue or $50,000, whichever is less.
Mayor Woodfin’s Healthy Food Initiative includes the Healthy Food Fund and Healthy Food Ordinance. The ordinance, approved by the council earlier this year, amended the city’s zoning ordinance. Among the changes, the ordinance increased the number of days per year that farmers markets and public markets can operate; permitted mobile grocers to operate in residential districts; and restricted new development of “dollar stores” within one mile of an existing “dollar store.” While many residents frequent “dollar stores,” which serve a purpose to the community, a concentrated number in targeted areas can often drive away grocery stores which may offer fresh and healthier food options.
