Residents in the Linden neighborhood on Monday celebrated the opening of a new market that will bring fresh, nutritious food and pharmacy access.
The building on the corner of Chittenden and Cleveland avenues used to be a run-down, abandoned corner store. If local residents wanted fresh, healthy food, they would have to travel.
Now, with funding from the city of Columbus, Nationwide Children’s Hospital, the Columbus Next Generation Corporation and a couple nonprofits, the building has been transformed into the Linden Fresh Food Market.
Reverend John Edgar, the executive director of the organization Community Development for All People, said Linden residents who qualify now have access to a free food market and free pharmacy.
"The Linden Market will provide almost exclusively fresh fruits, vegetables and dairy products. We want to make it easy for people to have access to free food, so they can eat healthier in order to live healthier," Edgar said.
Linden resident known as Miss Peg attended all of the planning meetings for the Linden Fresh Food Market. She said the quality of the food at the new market will be a major improvement over the previous corner store that occupied the space.
“Now, with the Linden Fresh Market and charitable pharmacy, my neighbors and I will enjoy getting quality food products, free pharmaceutical services and many additional resources closer to home," Miss Peg said.
Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther celebrated the opening as a move towards providing more equitable access to healthy food for all of Columbus' neighborhoods.
"We know we can't reach our full potential as a city and a community until every family in every neighborhood is sharing in our community's success," the mayor said.
The market is open Tuesdays through Saturdays and is located at 1464 Cleveland Avenue in Columbus. Qualification is determined by income.
