Local Nonprofit Plans Grocery Store For Tulsa Food Desert

The Common Good, a local nonprofit, is working to bring more fresh food to people living in Tulsa.

The nonprofit says northwest Tulsa has been considered a food desert by the U.S. Department of Agriculture since a local grocery store closed in 2017.

Now, the group is exploring options to open a grocery store in a vacant 20,000-square-foot facility.

Executive Director Stephen Pyle says there is no local place for people to shop for fresh food and produce in the area. He says this is leading to worse health outcomes and higher rates of disease and obesity for residents.

He says many people use the local Dollar General to get their food, and the addition of a grocery store would help increase their efforts to offer equitable solutions in the community.

“We’ve currently conducted a marketable analysis study on that space to determine viability,” Pyle said. "We do see some pathways there to a profitable long-term grocery store. For us, we’re continuing to update that and we’re continuing to explore some models, we’re working with some of our partners."

He adds that the closest grocery store to the northwest Tulsa community is in Sand Springs.