Chicago Politics

Neighborhood Market Grant Announcement 8.28.26

Description

Mayor Brandon Johnson attends the Neighborhood Market Grant Announcement.

Transcript

0:35 Thank you for that powerful good morning, Mayor. We appreciate that. My name is Brad McConnell. I'm the CEO of Allies for Community Business. We are here today because we believe that the most effective way to create wealth in our communities is to invest in the entrepreneurs who are already doing it. The most effective way to provide more healthy food in our communities is to invest in the entrepreneurs who are already doing that and help them to do more of it. At Allies for Community Business, our mission is to provide the capital and the coaching and the connections

1:09 an entrepreneur's need to grow great businesses, create jobs and wealth in our communities. We serve all of Illinois and Indiana from here, at the hatchery here on the west side. And we do it in all industries. We've got a really specific focus here on food and beverage because of this building. So we welcome you to the hatchery because here, this is the largest nonprofit food and beverage incubator in the country. It's right here in Garfield Park, and we've got entrepreneurs grinding every day in our shared kitchen, in our private kitchens, and in our training kitchens in order to create as much healthy food and as many jobs as we can right here.

1:45 But we want to get that distributed out, investing in all of our communities. And so anytime we get the chance to be able to partner with the mayor, with the commissioner, in order to get out into our communities and make more investments in more entrepreneurs who are providing more healthy food and more markets who are providing more healthy food, we're going to do that. And so we're delighted to be able to do that today. And to talk a little bit more about that, I'd like to introduce Commissioner of the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection, Ivan Katsbalvi, please. Thank you.

2:17 Good morning, everyone. Good morning. My name is Ivan Capifali. I'm the Commissioner for the Chicago Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection, also known as BACP. I want to take this opportunity to thank Allies for Community Business for hosting us this morning at the Hatchery Food and Beverage Incubator and Production Facility located in beautiful East Garfield Park. I also want to thank Mayor Brandon Johnson for expanding and restoring Chicago's food industry using an equity and community-based approach. Today, we are announcing an investment in the peoples, business, and neighborhoods that make Chicago food systems stronger, more accessible, and more resilient.

2:56 Through the Neighborhood Market Grant Program, we are providing one-time grants to small food businesses and farmers market operators across Chicago. This funding will help local entrepreneurs strengthen their operations and make improvements that will allow them to serve their communities better in many, many ways. We know that small food businesses and farmers markets do much more than sell food. They are neighborhood economic anchors. They create opportunity for local entrepreneurs and farmers.

3:27 They keep our dollars circulating in our communities, and they connect residents to fresh, healthy food close to home. We also know that not every neighborhood has the same access to those opportunities. For too long, communities across Chicago have experienced this investment that has made it harder for small businesses to grow and harder for their residents to access fresh, nutritious food. This program is designed to help address the inequity by directing resources toward businesses and markets,

3:57 operators in priority areas, particularly in communities that have historically been underserved. At its core, this is an investment in Chicago's neighborhoods. We are strengthening the connections between the people who grow and produce our food and the people who live in our communities. I encourage small food business owners and market operators to apply. Applications in English are live as of today, Friday, August 28th, and applications in Spanish will be available beginning Wednesday, September 2nd.

4:27 The deadline for applying is Friday, September 25th. BACP will be hosting, with the support of Allies for Community Business, many informational sessions about the program in September. To apply and for more information, visit Chicago.gov slash BACP Recovery Plan. I'll repeat, Chicago.gov slash BACP Recovery Plan. In closing, and to remind all of us, the Neighborhood Market Grant Program is here.

5:00 to support the business that Chicagoans rely on for fresh and healthy food and to build stronger local food systems. So now I want to pass it on to the Alderman of the 27th Ward, Red Burnett. Thank you. Good morning. Good morning. And it's a blessing to be here today at the Hatchery as we think about this program and all the businesses that are here who can benefit from that connectivity of local food sourcing and providing opportunities for our local community.

5:30 Sharing a meal is the most common and basic human deed that it's been throughout our entire history. It's something that brings us together across cultures. And to bring it to communities that have had the opportunity to have fresh food in the ways that others have, it's a tremendous opportunity. So I want to thank the mayor and the commissioner for bringing together this program to help make sure that our communities have the most basic functions to commune and bring each other together. So I'm super excited for this opportunity, and I'm very glad that it's being presented here in the 27th Ward. So without further ado, give it up to Mayor Brandon Johnson.

6:07 Thank you, Alderman Burnett, and good morning, everyone. It's really, really a good day for the people of Chicago, and I'm so excited about this opportunity and all of the work that the Hatchery is providing for not just this West Side community but throughout the entire city of Chicago. To join all of you to celebrate the launch of the new Neighborhood Market Grant Program is meaningful, as Alderman Burnett has articulated, ensuring that we are responding to the basic human needs that bring all of us together.

6:45 It's critical that government participates in bringing families together and to ensure that fresh food is accessible. So access to fresh and healthy food should not depend on what neighborhood you live in. But for far too long, that has been the case in Chicago. Our city's history of systemic disinvestment in predominantly black and brown communities has created a lack of grocery stores and access to fresh food in our neighborhoods. And so while some residents and families can choose from a variety of stores,

7:19 others need to travel long distances to other neighborhoods. just for something as basic as essential fresh food. And while my administration continues its work to attract investments into our neighborhoods to hopefully usher in commitments from larger retailers, we are also looking to our small businesses, farmers' markets, and local entrepreneurs already rooted in community as a reliable and lasting solution.

7:50 These businesses and food entrepreneurs have a unique commitment to Chicago because their heart is in their work just as much as their financial investment is. With the Neighborhood Market Grant Program, we are going to invest the city's resources directly into small businesses and market operators who are working to resolve our inequities and increase fresh food access across all of our communities. Small businesses and farmers, market managers in our priority geographic areas

8:23 can apply for one-time grants for $10,000 so that together we can address our food inequities. The funds can be used for a range of purposes, from equipment purchases to marketing and outreach, whatever they need to succeed and serve our communities. We will focus on the businesses and markets that are both economic anchors and food access points to holistically strengthen our food systems alongside our neighborhoods.

8:55 Ultimately, this program should not only expand an equitable food system, but it should also ensure that our local farmers markets and neighborhood markets as community gathering spaces can create jobs and contribute to the soul of Chicago. We believe that by empowering the small businesses that are delivering fresh food and driving solutions in our communities, we can increase food access across the entire city. Applications, again, for the Neighborhood Market Grant Program are open today through Friday, September 25th.

9:31 Small business owners and market operators can find the application available in English and Spanish and apply on Chicago.gov slash BACP recovery plan. If you're a small business owner in our local food system, I strongly encourage you to apply today and get the resources that your businesses need to flourish and serve our city for generations to come. and I encourage all of our residents to get outside while it's still warm enough and enjoy the farmer's markets.

10:06 But also know that this program, that we are working to drive resources to farmer's markets and local food retailers beyond the summer to ultimately ensure that you can always access fresh and healthy food. And so with that, thank you very much and I'm happy to answer any of your questions. We'll start with our first on-topic questions. Michael, we'll start with you. Hey, good morning everyone Good morning I see Liz Abena on the wall and I remember how big of a moment

10:36 last year it was when 40 Acres Fresh Market opened along Chicago Avenue and similarly I remember how big of a moment it was when you came to the hatchery's first day of the farmer's market for this season then that punch in the gut when Save-A-Lot closed and you mentioned in your remarks about the importance of today as well as attracting retailers for bigger investments. Can you speak a little bit about that in terms of not only today and the importance of today, but what the city is also doing in the wake of Save-A-Lot, similar to in 2021 in the wake of Aldi leaving,

11:13 trying to work to build that infrastructure? Well, you know, today is about, you know, marshalling the full force of government to respond to a critical need, right, access to fresh food. And, you know, it's a very unique dynamic in Chicago. People access, you know, food differently. So this is really about broadening our approach towards how people access food. You know, the entrepreneur spirit in Chicago is one that's alive and well.

11:47 I mean, it's the inception of our city was birthed out of the entrepreneur spirit with the family that established this city. The goal ultimately is to attract small, local retailers, but also larger chains, if you will. This is just the approach that I believe is so critical in this moment that businesses recognize that my administration is committed

12:17 to not just incentivizing fresh grocery to participate in our economy, but to put some skin in the game, right? Because if you think about our entrepreneurs, and you mentioned Liz, I mean, there's a great deal of sacrifice that comes along with opening up a business period. That's why our commissioner is clear about my mission to make opening and running business far more palatable and easier with our cut-the-tape-for-small-businesses initiatives, right?

12:51 So, again, this is just broadening our approach to ensure that the communities that have historically been ignored and disinvested in have access to fresh food while at the same time growing our economy by supporting our small businesses. In the meantime, Chicago will remain open for business, not for sale, and I'm going to do everything in my power to ensure that the people of Chicago have access to fresh food. How are you doing, Mayor Johnson? I'm doing well, thank you. How much money has the city set aside for this grant program?

13:23 Good morning. Ivan Capifali, Commissioner of the ACP, $500,000, 45 grants of $10,000 each. Mayor Johnson, at one point you had floated the idea, and I know your administration has kicked around the idea of a government-run or a city-run grocery store to address some of these issues. Is this a way for the city to address that need and those issues without the revenue sink of standing up a full-on grocery store?

14:00 Well, listen, like any big idea, and thank you for that question, we spent time actually communicating with the people of Chicago. And the conclusion that my administration came to was that it reaches more people when we can invest in the entrepreneur spirit. And so, yes, this grant program is a way at broadening our approach to deliver fresh food.

14:31 The brick-and-mortar stand-up was one, yes, that we did contemplate. But after further review and spending time in the community, there are a number of people who are already doing this work. And to have, you know, an establishment like the hatchery where individuals who are pursuing a small business actually have additional spaces where that development can mature. right here on the west side and so yes we are addressing the need while again continuing to

15:07 invoke the entrepreneur spirit that defines Chicago's unique soul so again the full force of government is the approach here and working with community organizations and partners to ensure that whether it's a farmer's market or again someone like Liz 40 acres in my neighborhood in Austin, that the fullness of what can be offered for the community benefits everyone, small business owners and the people, of course, who rely upon them.

15:39 Thank you. Brian with WGN. What was the moment your office said, we have to do something, when you were thinking about this program? What month, what year did you say this program has to be started? Who spoke with you that said, let's make a change? Well, this has been, you know, a challenge in Chicago and really, quite frankly, across the country for some time. The disinvestment, you know, in communities like the one we're standing in are quite severe.

16:10 Just not too far from here is Bidler Elementary School. That was a school that was on the list to be closed by the Emanuel administration. And through our operations of sustainable community schools, we were able to not only keep the school open, But now that school is is is an effective anchor for the community. And so this is not a new development, but I will say with the ongoing attacks on American cities from the federal government, the the urgency to respond creatively certainly has been heightened.

16:45 But, you know, as has been indicated in all of our speakers' remarks, we have been confronted with gross negligence and disinvestment on the West and South sides for decades. And now I'm in a position to actually respond to the needs of the community. So I'm going to continue to have conversations with entrepreneurs and stakeholders to ensure that the people of Chicago can access fresh food and we can grow our economy at the same time.

17:18 So I see this as a win and a win, right, where we can grow business while also providing a need and then government can help incentivize that. That's the way it's supposed to work. Unfortunately, it has not worked that way for decades in this city. because the lining of pockets of the ultra-rich and big corporations has been the unfortunate prevailing form, but there's clearly a new day in Chicago. So thank you all very much, and let's enjoy the rest of the summer, and go Cubbies!

17:51 Thank you.

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