Our state now has new legislation in place aimed at providing access to food, incentivizing grocery stores to locate in urban areas, encouraging investments, creating new jobs and transforming property that otherwise wouldn’t be revitalized.

Governor Rick Snyder recently signed the bill, which his office shared in a news release, expanding the definition of ‘eligible property’ for community revitalization incentives to include property utilized for a retail supermarket, grocery store, produce market, or delicatessen that is located in a downtown area or in a development area.

The bill also requires at least 5 percent of community revitalization incentives be awarded by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) to these food initiatives.

“A healthier Michigan is a stronger Michigan, and this bill helps promote the development of grocery stores to provide more Michiganders with access to healthier food options,” Snyder said. “We have the second most agriculturally diverse state in the nation, and it’s important that we expand the accessibility of Michigan’s world-class food products to all Michiganders.”

Andy Schor, former state representative and now mayor of Lansing, championed the bill noting the need for grocery stores in our downtown areas saying they’re attracting people of all ages, “but a lack of easily accessible grocery stores is still a stumbling block for communities.”

As CMF reported last spring, about 1.8 million Michiganders lack adequate access to healthy food.

The USDA’s Food Access Research Atlas illustrates how “food deserts,” areas lacking adequate access to grocery stores, exist statewide. 

If you check out the atlas, you can see an overview of low-income areas and those that lack access to grocery stores from numerous cities including Detroit, Flint, Grand Rapids and Muskegon, to rural areas in Northern Michigan and much of the Upper Peninsula.

Starting next year Detroit will have a new grocery store in operation on East Jefferson, making it the city’s third Meijer store. The Detroit Free Press has reported this will be a new small format store for the chain, like the small store currently under construction in downtown Grand Rapids.

Grand Rapids’ westside store will be the city’s first downtown Meijer, as the city’s westside continues to experience revitalization and growth.

MiBiz has reported that Target is also planning to open in downtown East Lansing next year.

Now that this legislation is in place in Michigan it’s expected to provide even greater opportunities for community revitalization and public-private partnerships to create better access to healthy food.