Construction could begin in January 2025 on new grocery store in central Topeka

One year after signing a lease for property at S.W. 12th and Washburn, the board of the Central Topeka Grocery Oasis is moving forward with plans to build a sustainable grocery store at that location.

If all goes well, construction could begin in January 2025.

“We are alive and well, but we are continuously altering the plans according to the marketplace,” said board chair Marge Ahrens.

A nonprofit organization, CTGO was founded after the last remaining grocery store in central Topeka closed in 2016, leaving nine core neighborhoods in the area without easy access to fresh, affordable food options. CTGO’s mission is to end food insecurity for nearby residents.

“Central Topeka currently fits the definition of a food desert,” said Ahrens, who is a retired Veterans Affairs social worker and lives in central Topeka herself.

Central Topeka food desert one of worst in U.S.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, food deserts have been linked to an increased risk for diet-related chronic illnesses, including cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes and cancer.

“These are people,” said Ahrens. “In terms of food accessibility in the nation, central Topeka is one of the worst.”

Ahrens and the other members of CTGO have been working since March 2018 to bring quality meat, fresh fruits and vegetables back to the neighborhood, a task that has proven to be difficult.

“The answers haven’t been easy,” she said. “We had been planning to work with an existing grocery chain. Post-COVID, grocery chains changed dramatically. Stores bought other chains and enlarged to a degree. This seems to be a nationwide experience.”

Ahrens points to a recent lawsuit filed by the Federal Trade Commission in an attempt to block the Kroger Co. from acquiring Albertsons grocery stores. The FTC alleges the deal would prevent fair competition in the grocery market and contribute to food deserts like the one in central Topeka.

Ahrens said lack of competition has been a challenge for the CTGO as well. Smaller, independent grocers who may be willing to serve the community find it difficult to compete with large chain stores.

CTGO asked Kansas State University and the largest grocery distributor in the country to look for an independent grocer who would be willing to come to central Topeka, and they were unable to find one.

“There is a nationwide dearth of independent grocers,” said Ahrens. “There are many people working full time on the food access issue in central Topeka who are stumped on how we are going to do it in a sustainable way. It’s a common effort, and so many want it to be different.”

Central Topeka Grocery Oasis board may run business themselves

She said CTGO is committed to energy sustainability and providing a living wage for trained employees. Most recently, the board has discussed the possibility of running the store themselves with the help of a grocery manager.

“This could work, and it would be an opportunity to serve the community in ways we wanted to,” said Ahrens. “We are committed to being able to sell affordable food, and we hope to find other grocers we could go in and buy with.”

CTGO recognizes the growing demand for fresh, local foods and the organization recently added two new members to the board of directors who Ahrens said have the pulse of area producers.

“When locally grown fruits and vegetables are available, we would be incorporating them into the store,” she said.

Ahrens said she believes that healthy, accessible food options are a matter of social justice and health equity. Living in central Topeka are 12,000 residents who are impacted by the lack of food choices. A market study conducted by CTGO and funded by a grant from the Kansas Health Foundation revealed the following:

• 30% of central Topeka households fall below the Federal poverty threshold.

• One-third of the households in the area earn less than $25,000 annually.

• Half of the residents of central Topeka are people of color, and many are elderly.

• Nine hundred veterans live in central Topeka.

• 32% of households include one or more disabled persons.

• 25% of residents don't have access to a vehicle.

Limited bus service to the area is costly and inconvenient for hauling groceries across town. A new store within walking distance would serve residents and employees of nearby businesses, hospitals, churches, schools and Washburn University by providing convenient access to affordable food.

Ahrens said people living in poverty already tend to spend more on groceries because the tax rate is a higher percentage of their overall income. Affordable food can increase residents’ well-being and improve their long-term health.

The grocery store would recognize WIC, SNAP and other low-income food programs, she said. It would also provide a community hub for residents and a place for them to conduct bank and postal business, make utility payments and provide employment to many in the area.

Last March, CTGO signed a lease with GraceMed Capitol Family Clinic for an acre of land to use as a building site.

Construction plans call for 14,000- to 15,000-square-foot building

Now, Ahrens said they’re ready to move forward. A formal business plan is in the works, and architect Corey Dehn, Schwerdt Design Group, has drawn up preliminary plans for a 14,000- to 15,000-square-foot building to house the grocery store.

“We have a gracious, LEED-certified architect who knows how to make this building sustainable,” said Ahrens. “We’ve spent a year strengthening our ties with members of the community and moved forward with drafting designs of the store. Now we’re ready to hire an executive director and an administrative assistant.”

The addition of those positions will assist CTGO in moving forward with raising the necessary funds to complete the building. A grant from the Topeka Community Foundation is expected to cover the salaries of paid staff, and all current members of the board are unpaid volunteers.

The Sunflower Foundation and the city of Topeka have contributed funding toward this project, with $628,000 coming from the city’s American Recovery Plan Act allocation to use toward the purchase of economically and environmentally sustainable refrigeration equipment.

Local community organizations are supporting the initiative as well, with one church donating the proceeds of a community-wide pickleball tournament to the efforts.

Ahrens said many stakeholders are helping move the project along, including GraceMed, Stormont Vail, the Shawnee County Health Department, United Way, Kansas State University and Washburn University’s Small Business Development Center.

Here's how to help Central Topeka Grocery Oasis with donations

CTGO is pursuing other government and private financial backing as well.

Businesses, organizations and individuals are welcome to donate at centraltopekagro.com/support. Ahrens said this summer and fall will be critical to the fundraising initiative, as CTGO hopes to break ground in January 2025.

“People can begin to donate and start talking about donating to others. This is a generous community,” said Ahrens. “I hope they will look at their assets and look at what this could mean to what some would call the heart of Topeka. What happens to us in central Topeka happens to the entire community.

"It’s a time of evening things out, and an opportunity for equity, justice and dignity through economic investment.”

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Construction may begin in January 2025 on central Topeka grocery store