The Ballard Food Bank will soon have a new home: construction started yesterday on their future permanent location at 1400 NW Leary Way.
The new 11,000-square-foot food bank and Community Resource Hub is expected to be completed by fall of 2021. Along with an expanded grocery section, they’ll have a cafe, garden, and service waiting area.
Their scope will be broader with the new space: they plan to serve communities including Licton Springs through Bitter Lake and as far north as 145th St.
“We are thrilled to continue this journey and start the construction of our future home,” Ballard Food Bank executive director Jen Muzia said in a statement about the groundbreaking. “This project is possible thanks to the support of many people and organizations who believe in our mission to bring food and hope to our neighbors.”
With the added capacity, the Ballard Food Bank expects to eventually serve up to 1,700 households per week by 2022. The Community Resource Hub will also be expanded to include organizations such as Byrd Barr Place, REACH, the VA, and Swedish Ballard Family Medicine.
The new facility will be the first building that Ballard Food Bank has owned. The organization received funding from a number of sources to build the new facility: the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation contributed $1 million, the City of Seattle provided $500,000, and the State of Washington provided $750,000.
The architect for the new facility is Graham Baba (who also designed the Ballard PCC), with Spectrum Development Solutions overseeing the project and Wilcox managing the construction.
You can read more about the new food bank here.
Photos: Ballard Food Bank
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