Only 550 Supermarkets Of 10,000 SF+ Remain In New York, Increasing Food Costs For Urban Poor - NYT

[hatrack]

EDIT

A continuing decline in the number of neighborhood supermarkets has made it harder for millions of New Yorkers to find fresh and affordable food within walking distance of their homes, according to a recent city study. The dearth of nearby supermarkets is most severe in minority and poor neighborhoods already beset by obesity, diabetes and heart disease. According to the food workers union, only 550 decently sized supermarkets — each occupying at least 10,000 square feet — remain in the city.

In one corner of southeast Queens, four supermarkets have closed in the last two years. Over a similar period in East Harlem, six small supermarkets have closed, and two more are on the brink, local officials said. In some cases, the old storefronts have been converted to drug stores that stand to make money coming and going — first selling processed foods and sodas, then selling medicines for illnesses that could have been prevented by a better diet.

The supermarket closings — not confined to poor neighborhoods — result from rising rents and slim profit margins, among other causes. They have forced residents to take buses or cabs to the closest supermarkets in some areas. Those with cars can drive, but the price of gasoline is making some think twice about that option. In many places, residents said the lack of competition has led to rising prices in the remaining stores.

The residents of the Ingersoll Houses in Fort Greene, Brooklyn, have been without their local supermarket since last year, when it was razed along with a strip of stores and restaurants to make room for new housing and retail developments. What used to be a quick jaunt across the street for Della Dorsett is now a tricky trek, as she maneuvers her electric wheelchair several blocks uphill along Myrtle Avenue, returning home with plastic bags dangling from handles and nestled between her feet.

EDIT

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/05/nyregion/05citywide.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

[speedoo]

1. Here in Brooklyn. local supermarkets are being turned into CVS drugstores.

They are really mini-department stores with emphasis on healthcare. You can get milk and other diary products, but no meats, fresh vegetables or fruit.

It really makes living in NYC much less appealing.

[Warpy]

2. Chain supermarkets in Boston usually lacked square footage

which means the aisles had room for only one shopping trolley at a time, something that made for interesting yuppie altercations when they'd meet in the middle.

A better article might have stated the death of the chain supermarket in the inner city, rather than the loss of square footage.

[tridim]

3. I hated shopping when I lived in Queens

Tiny grocery stores and multi-level K-Marts just freaked me out.

[Cassandra]

4. Some years ago, on the corner of 96th and Broadway...

a sixth health and beauty aid store pushed the last supermarket from that intersection, leading the residents to stage protests. It's not that there aren't supermarkets within 10 blocks (half a mile) from 96th street, or a lack of buses, but that corner is at the bottom of a considerable hill and the elderly have problems getting elsewhere. The 6th store moved out but I'm not sure if they got their supermarket back. And that is not a remotely poor neighborhood.

[Beregond2]

5. If there are

any supermarkets in NYC, I sure never found them. I practically always ate out, because trying to find a store with any selection, and then wrangling the bags home and up six flights of stairs cost me more in money and calories than it was worth! Of course I lived in the Village; maybe there are more actual markets off of Manhattan. But it sounds like they are disappearing too.

[YankeyMCC]

6. Death of community nt

[Thirtieschild]

7. At one time supermarkets inside Atlanta (e.g., inside I-285) charged more than those in the suburbs