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Ministerial alliance urges council to approve downtown site for Prairie Food Pantry; council advances ordinance but schedules hearings
Summary
Representatives of the Perry Ministerial Alliance described the need for a larger, downtown client-choice food pantry and sought council approval for a site at 8th and Elm; council voted in favor of the zoning ordinance but deferred required hearings to the next meeting.
Pastors and volunteers representing the Prairie Food Pantry and the Perry Ministerial Alliance urged the City Council on Jan. 21 to approve a downtown site and expanded building for the pantry, citing increased demand and the need for indoor space for clients.
Pastor Shum Durham of Calvary Baptist Church told council members the pantry needs privacy and protection from weather for clients who currently wait outside; the planned site “at the corner of 8th Street and Elm Street” would allow clients to shop inside and reduce exposure to extreme heat and cold. Durham described the pantry as a client-choice model: volunteers help patrons select items by household size rather than distributing prepacked bags.
Pastor Ron Fike of Perry Presbyterian Church described his congregation’s long-term support for the pantry and noted congregants who have provided the building space and volunteer labor. Amy Wharton, representing Calvary Baptist Church and serving as the pantry’s enrollment coordinator, provided usage statistics: she said the pantry served approximately 1,500 households in 2023–24 (up from an annual average of about 550 households from 2019–22) and supplied food to roughly 4,100 individuals in 2023–24. Wharton said 24% of pantry clients were under age 18, 41% were age 19–59, and 35% were age 60 and older; she also said it is estimated that 14% of Perry residents cannot meet their food needs and that the pantry’s clients may depend on the pantry as their primary monthly food source.
Councilmember remarks acknowledged the Perry Planning Commission’s recommendation and the volunteer coordination across multiple churches. A motion to approve Ordinance No. 2025-4 — to allow a use-by-review and site plan for specified lots in Block 11 (the food pantry location) — carried on roll call. Council also noted the statutory public hearings required for the land-use change could not be held that night because the council did not have the additional votes needed to open those hearings; the council committed to schedule the required hearings at the next meeting so the public can participate.
Council members and pantry representatives emphasized the pantry’s reliance on purchased food from the regional food bank, donations and volunteer labor, and asked the council to approve the site to increase indoor capacity for the winter and summer months.
The Perry Planning Commission had already reviewed and recommended the application before the council’s vote.
