Title:
Committee(s) Assignment:
Call for hearing(s) on decline of City of Chicago food
policies for underserved residents
Committee on Economic, Capital and Technology
Development
Committee on Economic, Capital and Technology Development
Chicago City Council Meeting June 22,2022
RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The announcement of the closing of the Whole Foods Market in Englewood was not only a shock and a disappointment to the neighborhood, it also brought into question the City of Chicago's efforts to bring nutritious and affordable food options to underserved neighborhoods, referred to as "food deserts;" and,
WHEREAS, This Whole Foods Market was opened in 2016 to great fanfare with help from a $1 land sale and an $11 million Tax Increment Financing subsidy that required a grocery store occupy the site until at least 2027; and,
WHEREAS, The City has yet to announce any definitive action or plans to replace the Whole Foods grocery store; and,
WHEREAS, A similar closing of an Aldi Store in West Garfield Park triggered a quick response earlier this year to aggressively acquire the site and actively promote it for redevelopment as an affordable grocery for the neighborhood; and,
WHEREAS, A second unexpected closing of an Aldi store occurred in the Auburn Gresham neighborhood this week leaving customers "flabbergasted" while Aldi cited "repeated burglaries and declining sales" as the reason for the closure; and,
WHEREAS, The inconsistent responses to the closing of these grocery stores calls into question the City's approach to addressing the lack of affordable nutrition options in Chicago neighborhoods; and,
WHEREAS, Solving the issue of food insecurity in Chicago will require the development of diverse, resilient and adaptive community driven strategies that recognize how residents' shop for and purchase food; and,
WHEREAS, Food security policy researchers are moving away from simplistic geographical "food desert" strategies in favor of "food access," an approach that...
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