Editing 'America's Playground' Is Now The Epicenter Of A Food Desert

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Last year alone, betting operators raked in $5.8 billion.<br><br><br>But in the shadow of the boardwalk's neon lights, the city's 38,000 residents deal with a grim truth: Atlantic City has actually not had an appropriate full-service grocery store 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 doesn't have a supermarket and that's undesirable,' Mike Suleiman of South Jersey Forward, a local think tank that studied food insecurity in the area, told WHYY.org. 'It's important for the city to designate somebody for food insecurity.'<br><br><br>For lots of residents, the simple act of grocery shopping becomes a difficult journey, from bus trips over bridges to costly Ubers, or counting on the kindness of family members.<br><br><br>'Fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, chicken, meats ... you can't truly get that at the corner shops, 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 family to a Walmart in Egg Harbor Township, told NJ.com.<br><br><br>'Usually, to find healthy food that's economical, you don't have much of an option, you have to go to other towns.'<br><br><br>Only 13 percent of homes in the Atlantic City-Hammonton area own a vehicle, 2021 U.S. Census data programs.<br><br><br>Food insecurity has actually left Atlantic City ranked among the worst food deserts in New Jersey<br><br><br>Atlantic City is understood as America's Playground with its beaches, fairground rides and casinos<br><br><br>Families currently having a hard time to discover fresh food in [https://wiki.arbyten.de/index.php?title=Benutzer:AntjeGether878 Atlantic City] say reductions to SNAP benefits could push lots of much deeper into hunger<br><br><br>Despite billions streaming through Atlantic City's casinos and traveler dining [https://qawiki.org/wiki/User:AlmedaKayser24 establishments] each year, residents say they can't even purchase fresh groceries in their own city<br><br><br>For locals like Rosetta Butler, a 58[https://www.adpost4u.com/user/profile/4376580 -year-old] who lives in the Atlantic Marina housing complex, redemption can be found in the type of a 40-foot modified 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 godsend,' she told NJ.com, showing off a bag filled with bread, peanut butter, and veggies.<br> <br><br>'It's a really big true blessing for people like me, who can't make it to the market easily ... you know, for people who can't drive, are older, or have health issues.'<br><br><br>In 2021, officials collected for a victorious groundbreaking of an $18.7 million ShopRite supermarket at Baltic and Indiana Avenues. Governor Phil Murphy hailed it as a turning point.<br><br><br>But within a year, the deal collapsed. The operator, Village Super Market, took out after the Casino Redevelopment Investment Authority (CRDA) declined its ask for subsidies. Residents were left blindsided.<br><br><br>'Not having a [https://bbarlock.com/index.php/User:AdelineSligo86 supermarket] after telling homeowners there would be one is devastating,' Mayor Marty Small Sr. told NJ.com. 'But our supermarket dreams are simply postponed, not dead. We continue to make every effort to find an [https://animeautochess.com/index.php/The_BetNaija_Promo_Code_This_2026_Is_YOHAIG irreversible solution].'<br> <br><br>Advocates alert that looming cuts to federal food support (SNAP) could deepen the crisis.<br><br><br>Be the first to commentBe among the very first to commentComments<br><br><br>What caused the decrease of 'America's Playground'?<br><br><br>Comment now<br><br><br>Community groups and mobile markets are actioning in to  fruit, vegetables, and dairy to having a hard time families (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 churches are feeding hundreds weekly as demand for help continues to grow<br><br><br>'This is [https://azbongda.com/index.php/Th%C3%A0nh_vi%C3%AAn:Britt81X50216 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 [https://www.beli-bor.co.rs/sports-betting/the-bet9ja-promo-code-this-2026-is-yohaig/ sounded] alarms, composing: 'SNAP is not simply a safeguard for vulnerable homeowners - it's a critical financial chauffeur and stabilizing force for entire neighborhoods'.<br><br><br>Grassroots groups are filling the gaps. [https://m1bar.com/user/Jonathon83G/ Alicia 'Lisa'] Newcomb, head of the [https://thestarsareright.org/index.php/User:OllieGee1275350 nonprofit] C.R.O.P.S., has actually worked with farmers and corner stores to equip much healthier choices, even securing new refrigerators for small grocers.<br><br><br>'Grocery shopping looks different in various areas,' she told WHYY.org. 'We worked with one corner shop to get numerous brand-new fridges which owner said he wanted to be the place where his customers can get excellent food.'<br><br><br>State authorities are likewise [https://m1bar.com/user/ElenaDunham11/ explore creative] fixes. Tara Colton, chief financial gatekeeper at the NJEDA, indicates [http://wyrdwalkerpress.com/index.php?title=User:Alfred2091 cooled grocery] lockers, similar to Amazon pick-up boxes, as a possible model.<br><br><br>'Similar to there's nobody cause to food insecurity ... there's likewise not just one service,' Colton informed NJ.com.<br><br><br>Meanwhile, the operator of Atlantic City's Save A Lot, Shawn Rinnier, intends to expand by 7,000 square feet. 'If we have the ability to pull it off, it 'd be a really great shop with a lot more variety,' he informed NJ.com. 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