PA FOOD BANK ACQUIRES NEW LOCATION
November 23, 2020
The Port Angeles Food Bank is excited to announce they will be moving to a new location. The date for moving distribution to the new building is targeted for Wednesday December 2nd. The newly leased space at 632 N. Oakridge Dr., with over 12,000sqft, will allow the Food Bank to meet many of the challenges created by COVID-19, as well creating new opportunities for future expanded services.
In March the Food Bank switched from a grocery store model to an outdoor, drive-through distribution in response to Covid-19 restrictions. This worked well during the warmer months but will have clients and volunteers outside in the harsh weather on the way. The new facility has a large, covered, outdoor area which will allow for a safer, drier, and warmer distribution process.
The new location will also provide abundant storage for fresh food which has been woefully inadequate at the current location, according to Executive Director Emily Dexter. “Over the summer we had to turn down several truckloads of fresh food from various sources because of the lack of refrigeration”, said Dexter. “We acquired an emergency refrigerated container to handle the overflow, but that filled up fast and we never had enough space”. Dexter said that the ability to store fresh food is critical to providing clients with the produce and dairy that are the mainstays of healthy eating. “Unfortunately, food that is more shelf-stable also tends to be more highly processed,” said Dexter. “The new building has a huge chiller room, which will greatly support our mission to provide as much fresh, nutritious food as possible to our clients”.
The newly leased building near the PA Walmart was formerly a beer distribution warehouse. Dexter says it needs work both inside and out to transform it into a Food Bank that is equipped to meet the current level of food insecurity in Clallam County. Ultimately the intent is to reinstate the grocery store model, where shoppers use Food Bank points to select what they want, with healthier food costing fewer points. The building is big enough to return to that popular format once COVID-19 restrictions hopefully ease next Spring. Until then drive thru operations continue and will move to the new building next month. Clients and volunteers can get the latest information by visiting portangelesfoodbank.org or the Port Angeles Food Bank Facebook page.
