After several hospitalizations over the past two years, Charles pointed to the closing of the Walmart grocery store, inside the city’s Community Redevelopment Area at 18th Avenue and 22nd Street south, as the fast catalyst for his worsening health.
“I used to walk there,” he said. “Every other day I got fresh vegetables and fruits, nuts, and other stuff that I would store in my room.” By Wendy Wesley, RDN CLICK HEADLINE OR PHOTO TO READ MORE
Our city has had five years to solve this problem. This is not five years with a stubborn property owner who will not budge, but five years of no movement on a property THE CITY OWNS.
Pre-pandemic data shows that 12.5% of Pinellas households are food insecure, which creates a food budget shortfall of more than $73 million. Imagine what that data will show today. By Wendy Wesley, RDN CLICK HEADLINE OR PHOTO TO READ MORE
If the owner’s repair of this sign is any indication of longevity in this neighborhood it does not bode well for the city’s ongoing and long-ignored issues with nutrition insecurity.
Pre-pandemic my patients could not access the foods they needed to manage their chronic diseases of diabetes, congestive heart failure and kidney disease. By Wendy Wesley, RDN CLICK HEADLINE OR PHOTO TO READ MORE
Data from the latest census show areas of USDA-designated “low income, low access,” or food deserts, have more than tripled in south St. Petersburg. This is evidenced by seven adjacent census tract areas in 2020 compared with two non-adjacent tracts in 2015.
The largest retail space of the city-owned Tangerine Plaza, once the site of full-service grocers Sweetbay and Walmart, has sat empty for more than four years. This spans a mayoral term and the term of district representative, Gina Driscoll. By Wendy Wesley, RDN CLICK HEADLINE OR PHOTO TO READ MORE
Lewis decided to challenge the city, bringing his bee crusade to the ongoing movement to loosen urban agriculture regulations in St. Pete. With the support of District 2 Councilmember Brandi Gabbard, the goal of concerned community leaders and residents was to amend the city’s Land Development Regulations to make it easier for residents to sell their homegrown produce and address local food insecurity. Article by Roxanne Hoorn, Published in the St. Pete Catalyst May 15, 2021 CLICK HEADLINE OR PHOTO TO READ MORE
The ordinance also gives residents greater leeway in the types of agricultural structures they can have on their property, with hoop houses, cold frames, greenhouse and vertical structures now allowed. Additionally, it expands options for selling produce from vehicles and on vacant land in non-residential areas. Home-based sales of honey are also allowed. By Brian Hartz for St. Pete Catalyst CLICK HEADLINE OR PHOTO TO READ MORE
Contrary to popular belief there is not a Publix across the street from another Publix in many areas of our city.
As evidenced by what we health equity leaves a lot to be desired in St. Petersburg. While we we focus so intensely on the redevelopment of Tropicana Field our attention is while we ignore Midtown which has gone without a grocery store for four years.
COVID 19, hunger and deep health inequities are a real issue in St. Petersburg and that is the true visual blight in this city. A garden at Allendale is the antithesis of visual blight. By Wendy Wesley, RDN CLICK HEADLINE OR PHOTO TO READ MORE
Pre-pandemic data shows that 12.5% of Pinellas households are food insecure, which creates a food budget shortfall of more than $73 million. Imagine what that data will show today.
Let’s take the foot off the gas of the Tropicana Field redevelopment and dedicate some vital and precious bandwidth on residents of this city who are struggling with chronic disease. Let’s ask for leadership to consider the needs of residents facing the greatest challenges TODAY. By Wendy Wesley, RDN CLICK HEADLINE OR PHOTO TO READ MORE
I recently served as a panelist for Churches United for Healthy Congregations and I brought up the concept of “food insecurity” vs. “nutrition insecurity.” The idea resonated with the members who agreed that loading a community with processed calories often from dollar stores and USDA food boxes only treats hunger. By Wendy Wesley, RDN CLICK HEADLINE OR PHOTO TO READ MORE
The St. Petersburg Development Review Commission has advanced a measure that would expand the opportunities to grow and sell local produce in the city.
The proposal would amend the city’s land development regulations to allow for more community gardens, commercial gardens and greenhouses, and to let growers sell produce in more locations, including residential districts. By Margie Manning for St. Pete Catalyst CLICK HEADLINE OR PHOTO TO READ MORE
A swath of northeast St. Petersburg between the avenues of 62nd and 79th north bordering 4th Street to the west and stretching into Tampa Bay to the east is the site of St. Petersburg’s latest USDSA-designated food desert.
The closing of a Winn-Dixie at 7489 4th St. N. on February 10 of this year is the catalyst.
We have taken countless measurements, written pages of reports and attended numerous conferences to glean best practices to bring back to our communities. It is now time to put resources and energy into solutions.
It is time for tangible policy and action. It is time for non-profits and government to show businesses what is needed and possible. It is time to put resources, previously used for data collection, into a communications plan that targets local businesses with the key message, “Here’s how you can make a difference in health equity.” By Wendy Wesley, RDN
When a diverse group of St. Petersburg residents were asked to name the greatest barriers to an equitable, resilient and regenerative food system, their answers had less to do with food and more to do with people.
1. Lack of interest in government leadership
2. Gentrification
3. Racism
4. Lack of funds/resources for business/lack of owned land
5. Community buy-in. People don’t know there is a problem
By Wendy Wesley, RDN
Story by Megan Holmes of the St. Pete Catalyst from December 9, 2019
When the Walmart Neighborhood Market at Tangerine Plaza shuttered in February 2017, its loss shook the surrounding community. It was the second major grocery store to close its doors in just five years, after Sweetbay in 2013. Now, 1,000 days later, the 42-block area surrounding Tangerine Plaza (located on the corner of 22nd St. and 18th Ave S.) remains a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recognized food desert, marked by low income and a lack of access to healthy and affordable food. By Megan Holmes for St. Pete Catalyst
Within a 42-block area of south St. Petersburg’s are six dollar-type stores and not one full-service grocery store that sells fresh or frozen produce, meats, dairy or whole grains.
Sold at these stores, two Dollar Generals and four Family Dollars, are highly processed, high sodium, low fiber, low nutrient foods that residents purchase in lieu of nutrient-dense foods available at grocery stores more than one mile away.
In total, dollar-type stores outnumber Walmart and Starbucks combined with more than 30,000 now operating. Plans to open another 10,000 are in the works. A trend is afoot nationally to shine a light on how they elbow out full-service grocers and other innovation for nutrition equity. By Wendy Wesley, RDN
Within a 42-block area of south St. Petersburg there is no full-service grocery store that sells fresh or frozen produce, meats, dairy products or whole grains.
But between 4th and 45th Avenues South and 34th Street South to the Bay there are six dollar stores: two Dollar Generals and four Family Dollars.
The scarcity of affordable and nutritious foods in the area may be impacted by the concentration of these small, discount stores that sell highly processed, high sodium, low nutrient and low fiber food. By Wendy Wesley, RDN
