Jump to content
Main menu
Main menu
move to sidebar
hide
Navigation
Main page
Recent changes
Random page
Help about MediaWiki
The Stars Are Right
Search
Search
Appearance
Create account
Log in
Personal tools
Create account
Log in
Pages for logged out editors
learn more
Contributions
Talk
Editing
'America's Playground' Is Now The Epicenter Of A Food Desert
Page
Discussion
English
Read
Edit
Edit source
View history
Tools
Tools
move to sidebar
hide
Actions
Read
Edit
Edit source
View history
General
What links here
Related changes
Special pages
Page information
Appearance
move to sidebar
hide
Warning:
You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you
log in
or
create an account
, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
Anti-spam check. Do
not
fill this in!
<br>Behind the glimmering image of a city built on high-end and excess lies a community where finding something as standard as fresh fruit or a loaf of bread has become a daily struggle.<br><br><br>The city, nicknamed America's Playground, is a seaside escape of flashy gambling establishments, celebrity-chef dining establishments and [https://gantnews.com/classifieds/author/emelyricket/ endless buffets] that drew 24 million tourists in 2024, according to the New Jersey Division of Travel and Tourism. In 2015 alone, gambling operators generated $5.8 billion.<br><br><br>But in the shadow of the boardwalk's neon lights, the city's 38,000 citizens face a grim truth: Atlantic City has not had a correct full-service supermarket in almost 28 years, and it now ranks as New Jersey's second-worst food desert, according to a 2022 state study by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority.<br><br><br>'Atlantic City does not have a [https://www.adpost4u.com/user/profile/4378984 supermarket] and that's unacceptable,' Mike Suleiman of South Jersey Forward, a regional think tank that studied food [https://livestatus.de/index.php?title=Benutzer:AmieMassie109 insecurity] in the area, told WHYY.org. 'It is necessary for the city to designate somebody for food insecurity.'<br><br><br>For lots of residents, the basic act of [https://karabast.com/wiki/index.php/User:OdessaDetwiler grocery shopping] becomes a grueling journey, from bus rides over bridges to costly Ubers, or depending on the kindness of relatives.<br><br><br>'Fresh fruits, fresh veggies, chicken, meats ... you can't truly get that at the corner stores, at the little bodegas, however that's mainly all we have here,' Ori Reyes, a teen who has invested her life making the 18-mile trek with her household to a [https://duct.co.kr/ru/bbs/board.php?bo_table=free&wr_id=70541 Walmart] in [https://unitedcorsa.com/index.php/User:TimmyGary3211 Egg Harbor] Township, told NJ.com.<br><br><br>'Usually, to find healthy food that's budget-friendly, you do not have much of an alternative, you have to go to other towns.'<br><br><br>Only 13 percent of [http://kandos.tacticalspace.org/index.php?title=User:MargieZza739626 households] in the Atlantic City-Hammonton location own a vehicle, 2021 U.S. Census data programs.<br><br><br>Food insecurity has left Atlantic City ranked amongst the worst food deserts in New Jersey<br><br><br>Atlantic City is known as America's Playground with its beaches, fairground rides and gambling establishments<br><br><br>Families currently having a hard time to [https://ekarange.com/the-bet-naija-promotion-code-for-2026-is-yohaig/ discover fresh] food in Atlantic City state reductions to SNAP benefits could push lots of deeper into cravings<br><br><br>Despite billions flowing through Atlantic City's gambling establishments and [https://www.garagesale.es/author/fidelp75356/ traveler restaurants] each year, locals say they can't even purchase fresh groceries in their own city<br><br><br>For citizens like Rosetta Butler, a 58-year-old who lives in the Atlantic Marina real estate complex, salvation comes in the kind of a 40-foot converted bus.<br><br><br>Operated by Virtua Health, the 'Eat Well' mobile grocery shop pulls into her block on Fridays.<br><br><br>'This right here, it's a blessing,' she informed NJ.com, displaying a [https://classifieds.ocala-news.com/author/chadgilliso bag filled] with bread, peanut butter, and veggies.<br><br><br>'It's a truly huge blessing for people like me, who can't make it to the market quickly ... you know, for people who can't drive, are older, or have health concerns.'<br><br><br>In 2021, authorities gathered for a triumphant groundbreaking of an $18.7 million ShopRite grocery store at Baltic and Indiana Avenues. Governor Phil Murphy hailed it as a turning point.<br><br><br>But within a year, the offer collapsed. The operator, Village Super Market, took out after the Casino Redevelopment Investment Authority (CRDA) rejected its ask for aids. Residents were left blindsided.<br><br><br>'Not having a grocery store after informing citizens there would be one is devastating,' Mayor Marty Small Sr. told NJ.com. 'But our grocery store dreams are just delayed, not dead. We continue to strive to find an irreversible solution.'<br><br><br>Advocates alert that looming cuts to federal food assistance (SNAP) could deepen the crisis.<br><br><br>Be the first to commentBe one of the very first to commentComments<br><br><br>What caused the decline of 'America's Playground'?<br><br><br>Comment now<br><br><br>Community groups and [https://45.76.249.136/index.php?title=User:JeannineDuval27 mobile markets] are actioning in to offer fruit, vegetables, and dairy to having a hard time households (Pictured: Event offering social services to homeless veterans at All Wars Memorial Building, in Atlantic City Wednesday May 17, 2017)<br><br><br>Nonprofits and [https://www.garagesale.es/author/noeminathan/ churches] are feeding hundreds every week as demand for help continues to grow<br> <br><br>'This is hurting single mothers and others throughout the nation and in pockets of New Jersey, it's going to be very bad,' U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson-Coleman informed NJ. com.<br><br><br>The Washington-based Food Research & Action Center has also sounded alarms, writing: 'SNAP is not just a security web for [https://wikibase.semantic-kompakkt.de/wiki/User:AlizaPilkington susceptible homeowners] - it's a crucial financial driver and supporting force for whole communities'.<br><br><br>Grassroots groups are filling the spaces. Alicia 'Lisa' Newcomb, head of the nonprofit C.R.O.P.S., has worked with farmers and corner stores to stock healthier choices, even protecting new refrigerators for small grocers.<br><br><br>'Grocery shopping looks various in different neighborhoods,' she informed WHYY.org. 'We dealt with one corner shop to get multiple brand-new refrigerators which owner stated he wanted to be the place where his [https://www.bardjo.ru/top/index.php?a=stats&u=mablelin81 consumers] can get excellent food.'<br><br><br>State officials are also [https://awheelandaway.com/forums/topic/the-bet-9ja-promotional-code-2026-is-yohaig/ explore imaginative] fixes. Tara Colton, primary economic gatekeeper at the NJEDA, points to cooled grocery lockers, comparable to [https://wikibase.imfd.cl/wiki/User:VinceRis0529011 Amazon pick-up] boxes, as a possible design.<br><br><br>'Much like there's no one cause to food insecurity ... there's also not only one option,' Colton told NJ.com.<br><br><br>Meanwhile, the [https://ajuda.cyber8.com.br/index.php/User:JuliusDigby3750 operator] of Atlantic City's Save A Lot, Shawn Rinnier, wishes to broaden by 7,000 square feet. 'If we have the [https://reviewer4you.com/members-2/siennagibb8629/ ability] to pull it off, it 'd be a really [http://topsite.otaku-attitude.net/index.php?a=stats&u=marcelmims68074 nice shop] with a lot more variety,' he told NJ.com. 'And I think people here would be truly happy with it.'<br><br><br>At [https://canadasimple.com/index.php/User:SamuelJohn082 Sister Jean's] Kitchen, the truth appears. Dozens line up daily for meals. Reverend John Scotland, the executive director of the not-for-profit. who runs the community kitchen, stated demand never ever .<br><br><br>All the enjoyable of Atlantic City's boardwalk and piers is seen above<br><br><br>Restaurants on Atlantic City's [http://dustlikestars.de/index.php?title=Benutzer:DebbraKnopf619 boardwalk] are seen above<br><br><br>'Today, we are open 3 days a week for 3 hours a day and we're busy the entire time,' he informed WHYY.org.<br><br><br>'We will [https://www.epesuj.cz/wiki/index.php/U%C5%BEivatel:JessicaFeliciano feed people] since they are starving. We make no judgment of whether they merit or not. That is what we will continue to do.'<br><br><br>Walmart<br>
Summary:
Please note that all contributions to The Stars Are Right may be edited, altered, or removed by other contributors. If you do not want your writing to be edited mercilessly, then do not submit it here.
You are also promising us that you wrote this yourself, or copied it from a public domain or similar free resource (see
The Stars Are Right:Copyrights
for details).
Do not submit copyrighted work without permission!
Cancel
Editing help
(opens in new window)