Atlanta looks to eliminate more food deserts

The city of Atlanta has made considerable progress eliminating food deserts over the past decade, but there is still ground to make up. 

Invest Atlanta, which is in charge of economic development, reached out to developers and grocery operators on Monday regarding food access, reports the Atlanta Journal Constitution. 

The goal is to attract grocery stores to areas in need, improve neighborhood corner stores, and create innovative programs to help with fresh food access. 

According to AJC, just over half of Atlanta residents lived within a half-mile of a grocer that offered fresh food in 2015. Five years later, that number improved to 75% and now the target is 85% by 2025. 

Downtown Atlanta, Grove Park, Pittsburgh, Thomasville Heights, and the former Bowen Homes public housing sites have all been identified by Invest Atlanta as areas in need of a fresh food supplier. 

There are tools which could be used to attract grocers to these neighborhoods, including an Economic Opportunity Fund, tax allocation districts, and tax breaks which could be offered to developers.