Most people in North Texas take for granted the food stories in the neighborhood. But that’s not the case in a neighborhood in southeast Dallas, which was a food desert with stores more than five miles away, when Save U More opened in 2016.
The store on the corner of Simpson Stuart and Bonnie View Road closed on New Year’s Day.
People who bought there on the last day found very little to buy.
“You can see all the way from the front of the store to the back of the store and all the way through the shelves,” said customer Pearl Smith.
In the months leading up to Friday’s closure, some neighbors said the weak stock led to the store’s decline.
City Councilor Tennell Atkins, who represents the area, has struggled for years to find a developer willing to open a store in the food desert.
“We need to make sure this community has fresh vegetables, fresh fruits and fresh meat,” he said.
There was a good offer in 2019, when Rodney Wiggins, who ran the store at the time, said it was a challenging location.
“A lot of people are afraid to come to this area. This area needs to be developed, “Wiggins said.
There have been crime problems in that corner in the past.
But there are also hungry people in apartments and single-family houses in the neighborhood. Paul Quinn College is right across the street.
The city of Dallas awarded a $ 2.9 million grant to the developer to renovate what was a decaying old mall and open a grocery store. Instead, the developer was to keep a store available to the neighborhood for 10 years.
“It simply came to our notice then. He said yesterday that he is committed to being here for 10 years. It needs time to restructure, to come up with a different kind of concept to reopen, ”Atkins said.
In August, a group of critics held a demonstration outside the store, opposing any additional spending by the city.
“Where did all the money go and when did the city get into the business of rescuing grocery stores and failed businesses,” critic Eric Williams said that day.
On Friday, Atkins would not rule out additional city spending.
“I think all the options are on the table,” Atkins said. “The city always invests in the community. I don’t think the city will stop investing in the community. “
Atkins said the neighborhood needs a grocery store and will support its reopening.
“Would be awesome. That would be wonderful, “said Pearl Smith.
He left the store for a longer trip on Friday, saying he doesn’t like finding food elsewhere.
Some neighbors in the surrounding apartments say they will rely on convenience stores and a dollar store within walking distance. These stores provide milk and packaged items, but not fresh food and full-service food.