Growing the Food Supply with Urban Gardens and Community Markets.

Nearly 50 million people in the U.S. don’t have enough food to eat and what they do have probably isn’t the most nutritious, leading to possible health problems later in life. Food banks and food rescue organizations are helping (we’ll cover those in another podcast), but so are community markets and urban gardens. They’re working to fill the gap by providing healthy food and teaching people to grow their own food. 

Interview guests: Adie Tomer, senior fellow Brookings Institute; Laura Schmidt, principal investigator NOURISH at UC San Francisco; Amarnath Gupta, NOURISH research scientist UC San Diego; Domonique Peebles, founder of Brick Gardens; Michael Schulz, co-founder and executive director Mission of Mary Cooperative; Jasmine Taylor, site director Meiser’s Fresh Grocery and Deli; Amaha Sellassie, board president of Gem City Market Cooperative 

How are neighborhood grocers or community gardens helping where you live. Share your experience and give the show some feedback: https://forms.gle/UjrZ1jYdtvRjgKqT9  

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Transcript

Ann Thompson:

Nearly 50 million people in the US don't have access to affordable nutritious food

Domonique Peebles:

Very quickly. I identified that I was lucky because I could just get in my car and go whatever grocery store I wanted, but my neighbors couldn't do that.

Ann Thompson:

About 14% of people are food insecure. In Hamilton County, it's 15%, and in Montgomery County it's 16%. What they're eating is not the best. Efforts are underway to change that.

Von Mayfield:

Nobody wants expired food, so fresh food is great.

Ann Thompson:

That woman came to a Cincinnati Urban Garden hoping to create one in her neighborhood. Meanwhile, Dayton residents know the benefits of freshly grown produce from their community garden.

Michael Schulz:

I think for children seeing they can see a carrot and pull it out of the ground, they're more likely to eat it because all of a sudden they have this connection.

Ann Thompson:

Some neighborhood markets sell or give away fresh produce and other staples, but with low margins, it's hard to stay in business.

Amaha Sellassie:

Because of our lack of access to supply chains, I mean, it's hard to get the buying power to lower the cost of the goods.

Ann Thompson:

Food insecurity is a persistent problem, and one report says, singling out neighborhoods without grocery stores as food deserts has failed to produce a successful solution. Can more urban gardens and community owned markets fill a gap? Let's get into it. This is Brick by Brick Solutions for a thriving community.

Ame Clase:

Brick by Brick is made possible thanks to leading support from Greater Cincinnati Foundation … AES Foundation… and George and Margaret McClane Foundation.

With additional major support from Laurie Johnston; the Robert & Adelle Schiff Family Foundation, Murray & Agnes Seasongood Good Government Foundation, and more. Thank you.

Ann Thompson:

Hello, and welcome to Brick by Brick, where we're highlighting solutions for a thriving community in southwest Ohio. I'm your host, Ann Thompson, and this is season two where we're covering solutions not only for housing, but also health in the environment. Food insecurity is an official term from the United States Department of Agriculture. The USDA says it's the limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods. In Hamilton County, nearly 124,000 people face food insecurity. That's 15% of residents, and in Montgomery County it's 16% or 85,000. Some rural counties are even higher, and the numbers continue to grow. According to Brookings Institute's Senior Fellow Adie Tomer who studied them,

Adie Tomer:

Food insecurity is widely prevalent in the United States. It impacts every single community we live in, whether the smallest town to the biggest cities and metropolitan areas, roughly 13% of US households are food insecure in some way.

Ann Thompson:

The latest Map the Meal Gap report says food insecurity is most prevalent in the south and among the black or Latino population is higher than whites. In nine out of 10 counties with available estimates, its estimated seniors will make up about 104 million people by 2050, and if projections hold, 9 million of them would be experiencing food insecurity. Many food insecure people live in food deserts areas which have limited access to affordable and healthy options. In Cincinnati, that generally takes in Avondale, North Fairmount Over-the-Rhine and Walnut Hills. In Dayton, it's West Dayton, taking in Westwood, Pineview, Lakeview and others. Adie Tomer says it's clear there are fewer food outlets in low-income neighborhoods where people of color live.

Adie Tomer:

There are deep structural questions about why that exists, but the facts on the ground are clear about which kind of neighborhoods do not have the same benefits of immediate fresh food access within their neighborhoods.

Ann Thompson:

Despite these hardships, there are efforts to get people the nutritious food they need, but it can be expensive. Consider this. The average cost of a meal in the US is $3 58 cents. According to 2023 data in Hamilton County, it's 10 cents more, and in Montgomery County it's 8 cents less. Feeding America says hunger and health are deeply connected. More than half the households the organization serves have one member living with high blood pressure and a third of a family member with diabetes. So you can see how the ability to eat healthy is important to everyone, not just to those who can afford it. We want to recognize that there are a number of things that can help decrease food insecurity. Among them, the federal government's SNAP Benefits, supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and WIC or Women Infants and Children's Special Supplemental Nutrition Program. Low-income families desperately need this additional grocery money and they worry some of that aid might be cut off.

Beyond that, there are a number of solutions to food insecurity. Food banks, pantries and food rescue are doing the lion's share of the work to keep people fed. We will focus on those in a future episode. Right now, we're zeroing in on urban gardens and community markets. Many communities don't have a full service grocery store, and residents are stuck buying ultra processed food at neighborhood markets because they can't travel to a Kroger, Walmart, Meijer or another store. How do you make sure they have access to healthy, affordable options? Brick by Brick’s Hernz Laguerre Jr. reports on two efforts where they can

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

Thanks Ann. In food desert areas like the Lower Price Hill or the Old Dayton neighborhood, food markets are like an oasis. They provide much needed fruits and vegetables and show that having access to a variety of food options enhances the livelihood of a community. Meiser’s Fresh Grocery and Deli located in Lower Price Hill gives out packaged free meals to local residents. As explained by site director Jasmine Taylor.

Jasmine Taylor:

Every Tuesday at 6:00 PM we create a meal, whether it be from the free products that we receive or free produce that we receive. We make sure every Tuesday everybody has a hot meal throughout this Lower Price Hill community

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

Run by the Cincinnati nonprofit called Your Store of the Queen City Meiser’s offers 50 to 100 of these free community meals on Tuesdays to help residents in need.

Jasmine Taylor:

We also have husbands that come in and their wives might not be able to cook because they're experiencing some type of illness and sometimes these kids haven't ate all day. So this is one of the biggest contributions to the community from Meiser’s in my opinion

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

Also offering a big contribution to their community is Gem City Market. In the old Dayton neighborhood, this market operates as a co-op, which is a grocery store owned by the folks in the area. This allows Gem City to not only serve the community, but allows the community to be a major part of that service.

Amaha Sellassie:

To me, cooperation is a moral force for human development.

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

The board president of the co-op Amaha Sellassie says, co-owning the market with the community is part of the effort to overcome systemic disparities

Amaha Sellassie:

In areas that's been underdeveloped. One of the key things that you're fighting is the trust issue. We've had a lot of overpromising and under-delivered, you know what I mean? There's a trauma that we've experienced. How do we shift to the community seeing themselves as developers?

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

So how essential are these markets? Jasmine described it as a lifeline.

Jasmine Taylor:

If they need medication, even if we don't have it on hand, we will order it for them because we understand that certain situations, they're not able to get it.

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

These areas experiencing food insecurity are often in low income communities. So I wonder how do you guys sustain the business of the store?

Amaha Sellassie:

Yeah, I think that is the challenge, right? Because of our lack of access to supply chains, I mean, it's hard to get the buying power to lower the cost of the goods

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

To help income stricken customers. The Meiser’s Store has a section that offers free produce and free packaged meals, which account for 40 to 50% of their inventory, but the market themselves need help as well.

Jasmine Taylor:

We are currently looking for as many donations and grants as possible. We are about roughly off 20 to 30,000 for what we're trying to obtain for our whole year.

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

And Gem City currently services 2,400 patrons a week making about $50,000 a week in sales, but that doesn't meet their weekly goals. I

Amaha Sellassie:

Think we're sustainable between 65 and 70,000 a week, and it's doable. We've been there before, but we haven't sustained it.

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

And with the passing of the Trump administration's reconciliation bill, these markets may face more hurdles with potential programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as snap, which account for 25% of transactions with Gem City and 35 to 45% of transactions with Meiser’s. Any reduction to these federal benefits could greatly impact the market sustainability and the most vulnerable patrons. The workers at these markets see the need firsthand, including Gem City Community coordinator, Julisa Robinson,

Jalisa Robinson:

This building right across the street, there are a lot of seniors in that building who are able to easily get over here and get access to fresh foods. There are a lot more healthy options here at Gem City Market versus the corner stores of the gas station, and that's all that we have for a long time.

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

And Almira Darden store administrator at me reminds us that anyone could become food insecure.

Almira Darden:

This community is experiencing a major food desert, and it's a great thing to be able to provide the resources to assist those individuals that need it most. And I mean, we're all one step in, one step out from experiencing those same things

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

And the patrons from both stores say the proximity of these markets give them much needed convenience.

Tony:

When it came to the neighborhood, it changed a lot of things, so I don't have to go worry about how I'm going to get to the store. I can walk here.

Dwayne:

I actually do have a car, but my car is broke down currently with it being so close by, I just walk down here.

Keira:

They don't use money as a barrier. They be like, oh, if you can't get this, we got free stuff for you so you can still eat.

Robert:

It's a pillar in our community and people in the community have stake in it. There's no other grocery stores in the community that the people in the community has stake in.

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

These markets are proof that despite socioeconomic problems, a neighborhood may face, the solution can be found in the community.

Amaha Sellassie:

There's power in hope, right power. I'm defining as our ability to change the environment around us, right? The more I believe I have the ability to change the conditions around me, the more I'm going to act to actually change it.

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

Both markets are looking to invest in their store to increase access to food options for their patrons and to increase their revenue. Meiser’s began selling low cost hot meals this summer. They also have an international section they're setting up to provide some more options in the store. Gem City has a four year plan in order to get to sustainability. They also have their annual meeting in September open to all 5,000 plus members of their co-op where they'll be discussing different dynamics of the store and they'll be getting input from the community on changes they want to make. Ann?

Ann Thompson:

Thanks Hernz. We'll talk to you in the takeaways. As you just heard, Hernz say, markets struggle to stay open. West Oakland. California's crowdfunded grocery store was hit by a lack of support, the pandemic and vendor issues. It closed in 2022. A Raleigh, North Carolina woman couldn't even get her market off the ground. Strong town's reports. Jessica Peacock wanted to reopen her great grandparents' neighborhood store, but after a three year battle of her zoning, she was out of money. After eight years, a Waco Texas store, Jubilee Food Market, has closed organizers. Point to changing grocery store habits. After a Snap pilot program allowed participants to shop online, ProPublica and Capital New Illinois looked at 24 stores in 18 states, including Ohio. And despite millions of dollars in subsidies from state and federal governments, many close their doors soon after opening or don't open at all. A few cities may try grocery stores owned and operated by the government.

Chicago is doing a feasibility study. New York City mayor candidate Zohran Mamdani has proposed them in all five of the city's boroughs. Also, the states of Wisconsin, Georgia, and Illinois are incentivizing them in food deserts. Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco and San Diego are helping food entrepreneurs with an AI powered platform. It's designed for people who want to open fresh food outlets in food deserts, suggesting access to loans and grants and online maps that optimize the placement of fresh food outlets for foot traffic. Uc. San Diego research scientist Amarnath Gupta helped develop the software for NOURISH, and that's where it's being tested. He says there are two ways the platform is being used, one with a community development corporation and another directly with an entrepreneur.

Amarnath Gupta:

So somebody has an urban garden, and we are working with one such group. They are working with us to understand how they can incubate a new business around their urban garden, plus how they can form a partnership network with other food producers so that they can create sort of a food court type of business.

Ann Thompson:

Here's another possible solution. The Brookings Institute says Communities have done a good job creating food maps.

Adie Tomer:

Where are those farmers' markets? Let's say on the weekends? Where are the urban agriculture opportunities? So the more interest there is in the geography of food insecurity, the better we can think about spatial solutions to customize to the unique elements of every community

Ann Thompson:

That helps residents and nonprofits create more awareness. Laura Schmidt of UC San Francisco is principal investigator for NOURISH.

Laura Schmidt:

Coming in the next calendar year, we'll be moving towards scaling it up and bringing it to communities all around the country. We have looked in planning for how we're going to scale this. One of the big factors that we're taking into account is where the greatest need is.

Ann Thompson:

NOURISH is looking at places like Texas, parts of New York, the Chicago area, and Detroit. As we've been telling you. One problem for people living at a food desert is some don't have transportation to a grocery store. In Lexington, Kentucky, there's a city owned 64 foot car hauler turned mobile grocery store that goes to every neighborhood once a week. The market is a joint effort between the nonprofit God's Pantry and Kroger. In its first year, it served over 1,000 customers, many of them seniors. Lexington is looking for ways to expand it, and it is answering questions from other cities who want to start a similar effort like Cincinnati. Cincinnati already has a mobile market on a much smaller scale. The 24 foot trailer is operated by the free store Food bank, and for the last six years has been traveling to 10 neighborhoods. You can see what routes the Healthy Harvest mobile market travels at cetconnect.org and thinktv.org 

Coming up on Brick by Brick, a hands-on approach to getting food.

Cecily Foster:

So I had went outside, pick some kale and some cabbage and some mustard greens, sauteed 'em up with some onions that I got from the community garden, and it was an amazing side dish.

Ann Thompson:

And how the organizer of one urban Garden is already thinking ahead to extending the life of vegetables up to 25 years.

Ame Clase:

Brick by Brick is made possible thanks to the generous support of so many, including Diane and Dave Moccia, P&G, The Camden Foundation, The Stephen H. Wilder Foundation, TJ and Susie Ackermann, Patti and Fred Heldman, a donation in memory of Frank and Margaret Linhardt, and more. Thank you. We couldn’t do this work without you. 

Mark Lammers:

A thriving community is not just a place, a stretch of sidewalk, or the buildings. It’s also the people that call it home that interact with it every day. That’s us, you and I. Hi, I’m Mark Lammers, executive producer for Brick by Brick. Whether it’s about housing, health, the environment or a neighborhood need and innovation, we want to hear your thoughts. Your input helps guide the solutions journey that we’re all on together. And the feedback is also important for Brick by Brick’s sustainability. To give us your thoughts, jut click the link in the podcast show notes, or explore all of our solutions stories on the webpage and click the big green button to share the latest from your neighborhood. Building community around solutions, just another benefit of local public media. Thank you.

Ann Thompson:

Welcome back to Brick by Brick. Studies show urban gardens can have a positive impact. For one, the food is healthier because it's straight from the garden and not processed. And two, urban gardens also support the economy and help protect the environment. One person said it's not only about food security and food access, but rather nutrition security and nutrition access and having a backyard garden or one in the community also helps save money. A 2016 report from the University of California and Santa Clara University found gardeners not only consumed more vegetables by growing their own food, but saved on average $92 a month from a backyard garden and $84 a month when growing vegetables at a community garden and as brick by bricks. Emiko Moore reports it's not only about eating healthy food, but also the neighborhood connection and feeling of participation for those growing it

Emiko Moore:

Amid rows of garden vegetables and fruit trees. Residents of Dayton’s Twin Towers neighborhood gathered on a clear summer evening to enjoy the annual summer potluck, hosted by the Mission of Mary Cooperative, also known as MMC. Michael Schulz, the co-founder and executive director has lived in the southeast Dayton neighborhood for the last 17 years, working to build relationships as well as local gardens full of nutrient dense produce for the neighborhood.

Michael Schulz:

We would try to throw events like that to build community. We're cultivating community with these growers and neighbors

Emiko Moore:

For residents who want to grow their own food. MMC offers two free programs, community garden spaces for those who do not have a yard or a backyard garden program in which MMC builds residents a garden plot in their yard and supplies seeds and tools. Sicily Foster a nurse and mother of three has always wanted a garden,

Cecily Foster:

And there were times when we had no food in the house and we had a neighbor with a garden and she would give us our vegetables. I ate 'em as five grain tomatoes as a kid, but I always remember that just if you don't have anything else, you can have your garden. You can go outside. So I've always just wanted that security as well to know if COVID hit or something else hit, I can go outside and see my family.

Emiko Moore:

Foster was thrilled when MMC built a garden in her backyard. Her food choices sprouted rapidly.

Cecily Foster:

Then this is our golden area, have golden tomatoes. That's Ms. Golden Jim, Ms. Golden Glow, and this is Golden Crunch. It's going to be gold peppers. This is everyone's favorite friend, Jose Jalapeno. Everyone loves Jose Jalapeno. We just pulled some off of him, but he has a baby growing right there.

Emiko Moore:

Foster has introduced healthier foods to her family and is creating life-changing habits.

Cecily Foster:

So these are things we just never, ever, ever had access to. They've never seen all these vegetables. My refrigerator is over half vegetables right now. I've never been able to say that in my entire adult life.

Emiko Moore:

Working to create fresh and healthy food sources. MMC obtained access to vacant property, improve the soil health and built 169 garden beds across six sites.

Michael Schulz:

Yeah, we use sustainable regenerative practices because what we've learned is the healthier your soil is and the way you actually grow, the healthier your produce is, the more nutrient density it has, also the better it tastes. And that's a big win for the community. We're serving.

Emiko Moore:

Foster's expanding her culinary repertoire while cutting her grocery bill in half.

Cecily Foster:

So I had went outside, picked some kale and some cabbage and some mustard greens, sauteed 'em up with some onions that I got from the community garden, and it was an amazing side dish.

Emiko Moore:

The quality of food greatly impacts long-term health. 40% of the residents in Twin Towers live below the poverty line with a median income of $18,000.

Michael Schulz:

Not all foods equal. And so when you ask yourself, why do people in poverty have higher rates of chronic disease obesity, it's not because they want that, but the food that's accessible to 'em for survival is not help in their health outcomes.

Emiko Moore:

Once the thriving area in the 1950s, Twin Towers was economically devastated. As industries left and construction of US, route 35 further separated the community from Dayton.

Michael Schulz:

People have seen us build this from the ground up on land that was empty for 30, 40 years. That was dumped on. And what Mish Mary tries to do with the challenges and the realities is say, how do we redesign a city, in this case, a neighborhood for the health of people.

Emiko Moore:

Today, with the help of volunteers and educational programs, they provide over 70,000 pounds of fresh produce annually to the community. In addition, their weekly farmers market and their boxed produce subscription or CSA provides revenue to the organization.

Michael Schulz:

Every Wednesday we pack over a hundred boxes for families and we offer recipes with any produce that's in season and they come pick that up at our farm.

Mark Lammers:

Twin Towers, residents get reduced rates and can use federal assistance through SNAP or EBT to pay.

Michael Schulz:

We've taught hundreds of kids and families how to grow their own food. That's a generational impact. But if we've empowered some neighbors to be servant leaders as well, to take ownership of their own community and try to make a difference, I think that's another long lasting impact to help make that programming sustainable.

Cecily Foster:

And I no longer, especially with the garden, I no longer just look at this as my house. I'm like, y'all, this is our land. Because once you grow something, once you can continue to grow it forever. That's what the seeds are for, and that is the joy of it. Once you do it once, your food is free for forever.

Emiko Moore:

I'm Emiko Moore for Brick by Brick. Ann?

Ann Thompson:

Thanks Emiko. We'll talk to you in the takeaways. The shelter St. Vincent DePaul used to run in Dayton now operated by home full, will reportedly have a farm outside the facility. The Dayton Daily News reports the organization could one day provide fresh produce to its full service market, Gettysburg Grocery. The article says, men at the shelter could help grow the fresh food on the farm. Dayton has a handful of community gardens designed to alleviate food deserts, and so does Cincinnati. One of those organizations called Brick Gardens Grows produce in Evanston, Madisonville, and Bond Hill, and looks to open another urban farm in Walnut Hills. There's also an indoor mushroom facility in Northside that teaches would be entrepreneurs to grow their own Bellarmine Chapel parishioner, Florence Niklewski harvests the produce in Evanston and hands it out at the St. Andrew's food pantry.

Florence Niklewski:

When I bring produce, people might be standing in line. I say, oh, what have you got today? And it goes quickly.

Ann Thompson:

Von Mayfield lives in Price Hill and came to Evanston to learn how to start an urban garden where she lives.

Von Mayfield:

The importance of it is to not be hungry. So that's the importance of having fresh food and two illnesses. Nobody wants expired food. So fresh food is great.

Ann Thompson:

And Brick Gardens organizer, Dom Peebles isn't stopping there. He wanted a way to preserve his unused produce as well as food from organizations that do food rescue beyond their normal shelf life. Last month he started freeze drying them in Westwood First Presbyterian Church's Kitchen. These heart healthy meals are shelf stable for 25 years.

Domonique Peebles:

So to give you an example, we have a partnership with Cincinnati Public Schools. Some of the kids that go to those schools are food insecure and they don't get those meals over the weekend or over spring break or summer break. So we can freeze dry these soups and stews that come from the soup. We can repackage them into little packs that don't need refrigeration.

Ann Thompson:

He says that a child can come to the office, grab a couple of those packs and put it in his or her backpack without anyone knowing go home and add hot water.

Domonique Peebles:

So we think that that project can definitely help in Cincinnati by supporting the food rescue missions that are already going. But then we want to show other cities in the US how we can take food that's already been made and extend the shelf life to provide it to people that actually need it.

Ann Thompson:

We'll follow his effort down the road to find out the impact. And we're also interested in another initiative. The Ohio Aerospace Institute with a grant from the US Department of Commerce will establish urban farms using drones and data to improve yields and serve people in food deserts. As more people ask for community grocery stores and urban gardens, we want to look at the limitations. Federal and state subsidies don't seem to be working. Why? As we mentioned, it's difficult finding a suitable location and they have limited access to capital. In 2018, Illinois highlighted the opening of six grocery stores that had received startup funds and four of them have closed. Customers say the prices are too high and they need to be able to shop in bulk, but those small markets can't compete with the prices of the big grocery stores and the government isn't helping regulate competition. Only four grocery chains capture a third of us food sales according to a 2023 USDA report. Here's something else. There is research that shows people don't choose where they buy food based on what is closest to them. Adie Tomer brought this up in our interview.

Adie Tomer:

It's been a real eyeopener for me, and there's actually a whole cadre of scholars that are also of picking up on these trends and why this matters is everyone's in it for the right reasons to address food insecurity, right? We're trying to make people healthier and trying new solutions is a beautiful part of American governance, our civic community, right? But we also need to have our eyes open when we're trying solutions that aren't making a difference.

Ann Thompson:

Limitations for urban gardens come down to available land. Brick Gardens’ Dom Peebles does 10 year leases and finds universities and churches always have plenty of land. It's also important to have volunteers and buy-in from the community so the gardens can scale. And as we know in many instances, these responses to Food Insecurity act in tandem to other activities in our cities, such as food pantries and rescues as we've shared earlier. We'll be looking at those responses later in season two. Remember, if you want to learn more about community markets and urban gardens and their effort on food insecurity and stories on health, the environment and housing in general, there are plenty of resources including web articles. Go to CT connect.org and think tv.org. While you're there, click on one of the big green buttons to give feedback or answer our current audience question. We'd really like to hear from you. We welcome back to the microphone, Henrz Laguerre Jr.

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

Hello

Ann Thompson:

And Emiko Moore.

Emiko Moore:

Hello.

Ann Thompson:

And it's time for takeaways. One of our favorite parts of the episode. So guys, Emiko, you learned a lot and met a lot of interesting people when it came to community gardening.

Emiko Moore:

Yes. One of the things I really noticed was the community building aspect of it. Two of the women that I talked to, Dawn and Ernestine, met each other at the community gardens because their garden plots were right next to each other. So every day as they were going to water their vegetables, they would get to know each other and talk, and over time would share garden tips and recipes and even produce with each other. And that's something that I would see. It really does help build a lot of social connections, which is really important, especially as you age.

Ann Thompson:

I like that aspect too., community gardening. And then when I went to Brick Gardens, which is on the campus of Xavier University, I heard from the founder how people participating in the community gardens would compete and they would try to outdo each other in terms of like, Hey, I have the most tomatoes, or I have the most squash. And they would plant marigolds around to keep things out and chicken wire and tennis balls. And so yeah, there's a little friendly competition going on.

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

That sounds cool.

Emiko Moore:

It is. And what's really nice is that that kind of competition really benefits the community because they're probably growing a lot more vegetables for everyone

Ann Thompson:

To give to the food bank. Well, the other part of this podcast was talking about markets and that was Hernz. And I know there's a lot of challenges to that, but there's also solutions and they're thinking ahead.

Hernz Laguerre Jr.:

Yeah, Gem City, they have a four year plan that I told you guys about during the package. And one thing I find interesting is that on top of having fundraising goals, some philanthropic goals each year for these next four years, they also have an investment that they're making into the community from personnel to projects. And I'll explain just a few. They hired a new community rooted general manager who is focusing solely on store conditions and pricing. They have a community engagement manager to strengthen stakeholder engagement in order to make sure that they're getting the items that the patrons want. So I think this is kind of emblematic of our takeaway, that there is a lot of power in the community and a lot of solutions within the community themselves. I feel like they are dealing with so much socioeconomic issues, but they're finding strength together.

Ann Thompson:

Alright, well said. Well stay tuned for another episode down the road dealing with food insecurity, where we focus on food banks and also food rescue. Thanks guys. 

Emiko Moore:

Thank you.

Hernz Laguerre Jr.

No problem. 

Ann Thompson:

Coming up on the next episode of Brick By Brick Residential Solar with changes to the federal tax code, is it still worth the cost?

Julien Domoulin-Smith:

It's not as if, oh, the clock strikes midnight, and if you haven't installed it and interconnected it to utility, you don't qualify. It's not quite that simple, right? Actually, they're third party leasing companies. Think about this as like a auto car lease.

Ann Thompson:

As electricity costs surge, we explore residential solar on the next brick by brick. 

That's our show. We'd like to know what you think about the podcast. Please rate and review it so it's easier to find. We hope you learn something and if you did, tell somebody or start a larger community conversation about it. For Emiko Moore and Hernz Laguerre  Jr. I'm Ann Thompson. We'll be back soon with more solutions. Take care.

Our show is produced, hosted an edited by me, Ann Thompson with reporting and story editing from Hernz Laguerre Jr. and Emiko Moore. Our Executive producer of Mark Lammers. Audio sweetening provided by Mike Schwartz. Zach Kramer runs the lights and cameras. Derrick Smith is our production specialist and Jason Garrison is our production manager. Kellie May heads up our marketing and promotions, along with Mike Shea and Bridgett Dillenburger. Elyssa Stefenson handles the website and Steve Wright and Josh Lusby are our designers. Bill Dean and Andres Kruza are the engineers for the show and our Chief Content Officer is Colin Scianamblo. Our music is from Universal Production Music. Brick by Brick: Solutions for a Thriving Community is a production of CET and ThinkTV, Southwest Ohio PBS member stations.