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Residents and board members press COA for larger pantry space and office reconfiguration
Summary
Multiple community members raised concerns that the food pantry has outgrown its current space and urged the COA to move the pantry into a larger room and to reconsider office assignments to improve storage and privacy for outreach.
Several Groveland residents and COA members told the board the food pantry has become too large for its present space and that reassigning offices could improve access and privacy. Joanna Donnelly and other commenters described crowded conditions during recent pantry shifts and urged the board to explore moving the pantry into the larger room so volunteers and clients would have adequate space.
Joanna Donnelly said the pantry is "growing, and it's a wonderful thing that it's growing, but there's no room for it," and urged use of the larger office space for pantry operations. Other speakers noted the director and outreach staff sometimes need private space to meet with residents, and that physical layout changes could allow privacy while preserving most of the large room for pantry storage. The board acknowledged limited town hall space and suggested possible partitioning as a solution, and planned to include space needs in upcoming town government discussions and surveys of older adults' needs.
The transcript records repeated public testimony about the difficulty of setting up on pantry days and the burden placed on Nisha and volunteers when staff are covering multiple roles. Board members said they understand the concern but noted solutions are limited by town building constraints and budget.
