Brother John Muhammad (front, left), a founding member of the One Community Grocery Co-op, Board Chair Erica Hardison (front, second from left), and its 185 members anxiously await for the city council to vote on a funding resolution Thursday. Photo provided, edited by Mark Parker.
A deliberate approach to establishing an enduring, community-owned grocery store in an area known for its limited healthy food options is on the verge of paying dividends.
However, the One Community Grocery Co-op needs additional support to continue its quest for a physical location in South St. Petersburg. A city council committee recently helped advance the cause by passing a resolution that “urges” Mayor Ken Welch’s administration to provide the organization with $50,000 in seed funding.
If awarded, One Community Grocery Co-op (OCGC) would use the money for professional training and pre-development work, including site evaluations. Board Chair Erica Hardison said the democratically controlled organization must also reach 300 members to achieve feasibility.
“We’re learning from the best practices of other co-ops, and memberships and funding are both major parts of that,” Hardison explained. “Even if we had all the money right now, and we didn’t have the members, we would still wait until we got the members.”
The organization participates in markets while working to open a brick-and-mortar store. Photo provided.
OCGC was born out of a grassroots movement formed in 2017 to address persistent food insecurity issues. Hardison said the nonprofit now boasts 185 members.
The unbinding resolution, introduced by Councilmember Brandi Gabbard and passed Jan. 29 by the Health, Energy, Resiliency, & Sustainability Committee, notes that “economic forces have driven grocery stores out of many neighborhoods in recent years, and people’s food choices are severely limited.”
OCGC now needs the full city council’s approval on Thursday, and Welch to acquiesce. “We chose to go through the resolution process versus some other ways to get money from the city, because it’s really important that we’re not working against anyone,” Hardison said of the group’s collaborative nature.
“We want to work with the city – we want to be an integral part of the city.”
OCGC also needs the community to, both literally and figuratively, buy into its mission. Members purchase individual shares, payable in $25 monthly installments, for $225.
Hardison noted that OCGC exists for the community’s benefit, and a “firm foundation” of 300 members fosters “staying power.” Cooperatives without broad stakeholder support typically fold within a few years.
“A famous saying in the cooperative world is that you can’t give a community to a co-op,” Hardison added. “They have to want it, earn it, and build it themselves.”
The nonprofit also hosts pop-up events, including a youth bowling social.
Those that grow organically have achieved monumental success. OCGC is one of three active grocery co-ops in Florida, and Hardison said one in Tallahassee has surpassed its 30th anniversary. The third has served Pensacola residents for nearly 60 years.
According to the effort justification theory, individuals place higher value on outcomes that require significant effort, time, or sacrifice to achieve. Hardison noted that two big-box grocery stores moved into South St. Petersburg’s much-maligned Tangerine Plaza and unsuccessfully attempted to “do great things.”
The neighborhood’s last grocer shuttered in 2017. “It wasn’t something that people found ownership in,” Hardison said.
OCGC is not “beholden to corporate investors,” and is working to build a generational institution that “people can call their own.” Hardison believes the co-op will improve health outcomes, provide jobs, and stimulate the local economy.
“It is about opening and maintaining a grocery store, but it’s also about addressing the needs of the whole person,” Hardison said. “You can give people great food, but if other parts of their lives are unfilled, it can prevent them from thriving.”
Non-members can also contribute to OCGC’s mission. Hardison said someone’s “time, talent, treasure, and ties” within the community are equally important.
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More Photos
Produce sold by the One Community Grocery Co-op at a market. Photo provided.
Former City Councilmember Brother John Muhammad (front), and Once Community Grocery Co-op members help beautify the 49th Street South corridor. Photo provided.
The One Community Grocery Co-op hosted a drum circle at Pinellas Technical College. Photo provided.
