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Senate backs grants, loans to spur grocery stores in underserved neighborhoods
Summary
The Senate passed a bill to allow grants and loans for new and expanding grocery stores in underserved communities, adding grocery construction as an eligible project for state economic development programs, sponsors said.
The Senate voted to expand the state economic development program to include construction and expansion of grocery stores as eligible projects, aiming to address food deserts in underserved neighborhoods.
Sponsor Senator Baskin said the measure will provide grants and loans to entities opening or expanding grocery stores in communities that lack access to fresh food, citing neighborhood markets in Buffalo and the recent Tops Market shooting as context for decades of disinvestment. Senator May supported the bill and described grassroots efforts in Syracuse to establish a grocery on South Salina Street where many residents lack cars and have poor access to healthy food.
Why it matters: Supporters argued that more grocery stores improve public health and community stability. Opponents were few on the floor; the bill was previously vetoed by the governor last session and sponsors said they will continue outreach to secure enactment.
Vote and next steps: The Senate recorded the bill as passed (vote recorded on the floor as Ayes 61, Nays 1 in the transcript for the related calendar). The sponsor said she intends to work with the governor’s office and the Assembly to secure enactment.
Ending: The bill’s passage authorizes the state to include grocery store projects in economic development programs; details on funding sources and program administration were not specified in the floor remarks and would be determined in program rules or the state budget.
