Most people in North Texas take for granted the grocery stories of 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.
This store near the corner of Simpson Stuart Road and Bonnie View Road closed on New Year’s Day.
People who bought there on the last day found very little to buy.
“It can be seen 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 the closing on Friday, some residents said bad stocks caused the store to go down.
City Councilman Tennell Atkins, who represents the area, 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 fruit and fresh meat,” he said.
There was a good deal in 2019 when Rodney Wiggins, who was running the store at the time, said it was a difficult place.
“Many people are afraid to come to this area. We need to take advantage of this area, ”said Wiggins.
There have been delinquency issues in this corner in the past.
But there are also hungry people in apartments and single-family homes in the neighborhood. Paul Quinn College is right across the street.
The city of Dallas provided a $ 2.9 million grant to the developer to renovate what was a former decaying mall and open the grocery store. In return, the developer had to keep a store available to the neighborhood for ten 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 another kind of concept to reopen, ”Atkins said.
In August, a group of critics staged a demonstration in front of the store, opposing any other spending in the city.
“Where did all the money go and when did the city start the business of rescuing grocery stores and bankrupt 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 the reopening.
“That would be great. It would really be great,” said client Pearl Smith.
He walked out of the store on a longer trip Friday that said he didn’t like finding food anywhere else.
Some residents of nearby apartments say they will trust convenience stores and a dollar store within walking distance. These stores supply milk and packaged items, but not fresh food and full-service groceries.