David Michael Miller
I live on Madison’s north side. I love it — great neighbors, beautiful parks and surprisingly decent bus access. It’s a diverse part of the city. Within one mile, you’ve got affordable housing, modest single-family homes and lake shore mini-mansions. The only thing I miss from my days of living on Madison’s near east side is the easy access to the Willy St. Co-op.
So I was ecstatic when I learned last week that the co-op was looking into opening its third store in the grocery store location that is currently Pierce’s Market. Of course, there were some online commenters who were to quick to question whether the north side can support a co-op. For me, the answer is a definite yes.
Trust me, the north side has more than its share of co-op-shopping hippies. Hang out by Troy Gardens for the afternoon and you’ll meet some people who can out-crunch the crunchiest of liberals anywhere else in this very crunchy city. The north side has long been a leader in Madison’s local food movement. Community Groundworks is a north-side project. FEED Kitchens is a north-side project, spawning new businesses and increasing access to local food for everyone in the Madison area.
Plus, this store isn’t going to serve only those who live within one mile of the co-op. Willy St. Co-op is the strongest local brand in Madison (well, the strongest local brand that isn’t a microbrewery or artisan chocolate shop). It’s a destination trip for shoppers seeking out specialty items that are hard to find at other stores. Residents of Westport, Waunakee and Sun Prairie are all potential shoppers. Given the choice between Willy East’s woefully undersized parking lot and the ample parking of a Willy North, even some consumers who live closer to Willy East are going to choose Willy North.
Willy St. Co-op will do fine in the north-side location. The real question is: Will the co-op serve the entire community? The co-op is looking into this location to prevent the north side becoming a food desert. But a neighborhood grocery store isn’t of much use if its goods are unaffordable to many. Down the strip mall from the proposed co-op location is a Family Dollar. If this co-op isn’t planned correctly, the divide between the co-op and Family Dollar sides of the parking lot could be as stark an image of de facto segregation as separate water fountains are of de jure segregation.
It is a real tragedy that the stereotype has developed that co-ops can only serve affluent, Bernie Sanders-voting whites. That stereotype has limited the impact of this truly transformative, empowering business model. Co-op grocery stores have great potential to serve as a community-led solution to food deserts.
The good news is that there are co-ops opening that serve as more than just boutique grocery stores, co-ops that care more about getting fresh produce to the community regardless of an organic label. These co-ops are opening in places like Detroit and Greensboro, N.C. Here in Madison, there is going to be such a co-op on Allied Drive; Willy St. Co-op is serving as an adviser there.
Willy St. Co-op North will probably have to be a bit of both boutique and conventional store, and that won’t be easy. The management at Pierce’s tried to meet the needs of all the diverse constituencies on the north side. It was an admirable effort, but they ended up with a store that was a Jack of all trades and a master of none.
Luckily, the folks at Willy St. Co-op seem to be well aware of these potential issues. The existing co-op locations have worked to make their goods more accessible. For example, both stores accept EBT food assistance cards. In the post that announced the potential north-side location, the co-op’s management also mentioned that the store would carry different goods than the other locations, including more lower-priced conventional goods. They’ve said they’ll meet with neighborhood groups to figure out what the final store will look like. It would also be wise for them to provide outreach and education on what a co-op is and what co-op membership looks like.
I read the co-op’s newsletter — if their managers can respond to the concerns of their more eccentric east-side shoppers, they can work with almost anyone. The north side is also blessed with great community organizations like the Northside Planning Council, a strong advocate for the area. They’ve been the ones pushing the co-op to come in; I’m sure they’ll be active in the development of the store.
I’m excited about the potential of Willy St. Co-op North. It’s finally time the north side gets a co-op that reflects and serves this vibrant, wonderful part of Madison.
Alan Talaga co-writes the Off the Square cartoon with Jon Lyons and blogs at isthmus.com/madland.