print this articleDaily Southtown
By Jonathan Lipman
Chicago can do more to get grocery stores into neighborhoods that don't have them, says a task force tackling the problem of "food access."
Some Chicago communities, such as West Lawn, have no neighborhood grocery stores.
The southern half of the city has fewer grocers overall, business consultant Mari Gallagher said. While there are pockets of problems on the Southwest Side, the problem is worse in poor and minority communities to the east.
"It can be very difficult to buy healthy food, ... which is especially troubling because of a lot of people living in these communities have high blood pressure and other health needs," Gallagher said.
Aldermen began focusing on the issue last summer, when community groups such
as the West Lawn Chamber of Commerce pointed out many South Side residents
must travel north or to the suburbs to find a grocery store.
"If you want to bring fresh produce, fresh meats to communities ... we have to look at some additional ways to help finance these projects," said task force member David Vite, president of the Illinois Retail Merchants Association.
Alds. Manuel Flores (1st) and Margaret Laurino (39th) last month created the task force of community advocates, academics and industry representatives. The group made its first report to Laurino's economic development committee Monday.
The group applauded a city plan to hold a "grocery store expo" Feb. 14 that will let grocers meet with city officials who hope to encourage investment in new stores.
The planning department has invited established chains such as Jewel Food Stores and Dominick's Finer Foods as well as companies that haven't opened stores in Chicago yet, spokeswoman Constance Buscemi said.
Grocery store owners need financial help in some communities, Vite said, suggesting Chicago use sales tax rebates that are popular incentives in some suburbs. He also pressed for less regulation, a perennial complaint of store owners in Chicago.
