AURORA, Colo. — The Food Bank of the Rockies' new food distribution center in Aurora is on track to open this winter.
For the largest food bank in the Rocky Mountain area, the timing is perfect.
"Now with the Budget Reconciliation Act, there are reductions in both SNAP and Medicaid, which we expect will impact the number of people needing food assistance over the next decade," said Erin Pulling, CEO of the Food Bank of the Rockies. "So this is a facility that we've been working on for a while, and now that the bill has passed, we cannot get into this building soon enough."
The 270,000-square-foot facility will add several improvements not possible at the current two locations where Food Bank of the Rockies currently operates:
- Double cold storage for fresh and frozen items
- Triple volunteer capacity
- Quadruple kitchen space
- Allow the food bank to produce four times as many kids' meals and gradually offer up to 50% more fresh produce
- Increase food storage capacity by 67%
- Enable distribution of up to 300% more culturally responsive food
- Reduce operating costs by more than $500,000 annually by consolidating Denver-area operations under one roof and investing in sustainability
Food Bank of the Rockies said those cost savings will go right back into its food distribution efforts. Food bank officials anticipate scaling up distribution to 100 million pounds of food annually within a few years.
While the construction costs are 85% covered, the Food Bank of the Rockies is accepting community donations to get it across the finish line. For more information about the project and how you can donate, click here.
