Recent statistics show that 14% of Atlanta’s population is food insecure, with minorities struggling with hunger more than other households. To help address this issue, the Invest Atlanta Board approved $2.5 million to fund five fresh food access projects that will significantly increase the availability of healthy, affordable food across the city. The funding will provide additional grocery options to more than 11,000 residents living in low-income and low-access areas as defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

“A city of opportunity is one where all residents have access to fresh, affordable food in their communities,” says Mayor Andre Dickens. “The funding approved by the Invest Atlanta Board upholds this commitment and will help us foster strong, healthy neighborhoods throughout the city.”

Mayor Dickens worked with Invest Atlanta to establish new fresh food access initiatives, including the Atlanta Food Access Catalyst Grant (AFACG) program for those affected by food insecurity, especially Atlanta’s senior population. Funding for the AFACG is part of a $6 million investment from the Atlanta City Council to bring more fresh food options to low-income and low-access neighborhoods.

Projects approved by the Invest Atlanta Board for Atlanta Food Access Catalyst Grants include:

• Goodr Be on Edgewood – Goodr is a national leader in innovative approaches to improving food security by connecting excess food that is completely safe for consumption with food insecure communities. Leveraging a $330,000 Atlanta Food Access Catalyst grant, Goodr will open a grocery store at Be on Edgewood serving Atlanta's senior and unhoused communities. Goodr Be on Edgewood will also provide community members with healthcare services through a partnership with WellStar.
• City of Refuge – City of Refuge is a faith-based nonprofit servicing the city of Atlanta for nearly 30 years, including Washington Heights, Bankhead and Grove Park. By providing housing, job training and education, City of Refuge has established itself as a national leader in community development and economic mobility. The City of Refuge Transformation Center on Joseph E. Boone Boulevard is a new facility that will include an entrepreneurship hub, a healthcare clinic, a credit union, and a healthy neighborhood market. The project received a $200,000 Atlanta Food Access Catalyst Grant to help finance the development of the neighborhood market, as well as a $2 million in Beltline TAD grant and $8.5 million in New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC) financing to support the broader development project.
• Atlanta Community Food Bank – The Food Bank will renovate an existing commercial property along the Martin Luther King Drive corridor and open a Community Food Center (CFC). The Food Bank has been awarded a $250,000 Atlanta Food Access Catalyst grant and a $250,000 Tax Allocation District (TAD) grant, which will support the creation of the first Community Food Center in the city of Atlanta, reusing a vacant retail space on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. 

"Addressing food insecurity is not merely a challenge,” says Dr. Eloisa Klementich, president and CEO of Invest Atlanta, “it is an imperative that demands collective action to ensure that every individual has access to the nourishment they need to thrive."

Additional food access projects approved for funding by the Invest Atlanta Board include:

• 500 James P. Brawley Drive – The proposed project seeks to redevelop a well-known neighborhood space, commonly known as the “Yellow Store.” The vacant building will become a mixed-use development with neighborhood retail on the ground floor and residential on the second level. Leveraging a $750,000 Westside TAD grant, improvements include the addition of an outdoor canopy at the rear of the building intended to provide seating for a local food service tenant.
• Sweet Auburn Municipal Market – Opened in its current building on Auburn Avenue in 1924, the Municipal Market now houses 30 local businesses, including grocery vendors, retail stores and several popular eateries. Through a $775,000 Eastside TAD grant and funding from the City of Atlanta, the Municipal Market will reconfigure its vendor booths and fund a new Vendor Success Program administered by Invest Atlanta.

In addition to increasing grocery options, the approved projects will create more than $53.8 million in economic impact and create or preserve 226 jobs.