The First Tennessee Development District is excited to announce that all 8 counties in the district, representing 28 organizations, have been awarded Community Development Block Grants to address food insecurity. Together, these grants total $3,097,973 and will be used to purchase supplies and equipment to expand capacity to distribute food to low-income communities and populations.
These funds were made available through the Tennessee Department of Economic & Community Development utilizing CARES Act dollars via the United States Department of Housing & Urban Development. The grant program specifically envisions partnerships with local governments and service providers throughout the region. “Working with local nonprofits and the County governments, the need in the region quickly became clear,” shared Geneva King, community development coordinator with the FTDD. “The level of public input and interest in food insecurity reaffirms that, and we are thrilled that so many of the region’s applications were fully funded,” she went on to add.
The grant funds will cover equipment ranging from delivery trucks, flatbed trailers, walk-in coolers, forklifts, pallet jacks, shelving, and other items. This equipment will make it possible for the food pantries to transport more food at one time from Second Harvest Food Bank, store more perishable food items, make food distributions more efficient, and overall allow them to serve more people. These food pantries serve hundreds of families each month, and as food prices continue to rise and federal corona virus assistance has stopped, most food pantries are projecting a 10% increase in clients this year.
For questions related to the CDBG-CV grants designed to address food insecurity, please contact Geneva King at gking@ftdd.org.
For questions related to this or other District News, please contact Mark Stevans, mstevans@ftdd.org.
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