The Pennsylvania Fresh Food Financing Initiative is luring supermarkets to into urban locations in hopes of providing residents with healthier eating options that are largely absent from many inner-city neighborhoods.
"It seems that anyone you talk to in the streets around Progress Plaza, a tattered shopping center in a mainly black, poor part of North Philadelphia, is excited...soon a large Fresh Grocer supermarket is set to open here."
" "Everybody will be so happy to see a new store," said Anna Keller, a retired nurse's aide, as she took home a large bag of items from Popeyes, the fast-food chicken restaurant, in the plaza. "I know I'll eat better," she said, talking about the ready access to aisles of fresh produce and meats. "I know this greasy food is killing me." "
"Whether easy access to the bounties of a supermarket will actually transform eating habits remains to be seen, but the fight against obesity has become a major rationale, along with lower prices and the promotion of wider retail development, for efforts to bring supermarkets to what have been called the food deserts of poor urban areas.
The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences has sponsored a before-and-after study of eating habits around the future supermarket here, looking especially to see if consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables, rather than chips and soda, will rise.
The new grocery store is part of a broader renovation of the plaza, aided by millions in public and private loans. The store was lured here by the Fresh Food Financing Initiative, which has subsidized development of two dozen supermarkets in deprived urban and rural areas of Pennsylvania and is considered a national model. The Legislature put up seed money and joined forces with the Food Trust, a private group that promotes healthy diets, and the Reinvestment Fund, which marshals money for community development. The initiative provides cash grants of up to $250,000 and, sometimes, millions of dollars in loans to prospective supermarket developers."
FULL STORY: In Market, Hopes for Health and Urban Renewal

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

In Urban Planning, AI Prompting Could be the New Design Thinking
Creativity has long been key to great urban design. What if we see AI as our new creative partner?

King County Supportive Housing Program Offers Hope for Unhoused Residents
The county is taking a ‘Housing First’ approach that prioritizes getting people into housing, then offering wraparound supportive services.

Researchers Use AI to Get Clearer Picture of US Housing
Analysts are using artificial intelligence to supercharge their research by allowing them to comb through data faster. Though these AI tools can be error prone, they save time and housing researchers are optimistic about the future.

Making Shared Micromobility More Inclusive
Cities and shared mobility system operators can do more to include people with disabilities in planning and operations, per a new report.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
planning NEXT
Appalachian Highlands Housing Partners
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie