The Access food pantry has operated out of Talent's old Town Hall. A fire in April caused the building to be shut down for renovations.
James Kelley / JPR News
The city of Talent permanently closed the doors of one of its only food pantries last week.
As of June 27, people are no longer able to obtain groceries from the Talent Food Pantry, which was located in the city’s old Town Hall. Access, the community action agency that had been operating the pantry, was notified suddenly that it would have to pack up and find somewhere else to distribute food.
For years, the food pantry provided groceries as well as cleaning supplies to many of its neighbors who meet low income requirements. That’s roughly 600 people a month, many of whom were displaced by wildfires in southwest Oregon and northern California in recent years. Access operates another pantry in Talent, but the Town Hall pantry is the only one located in the city center.
City Manager Gary Milliman said the food pantry can’t operate at the location because of a fire that broke out in Talent’s old Town Hall on April 17, resulting in conditions which will require “the meticulous cleaning of the entire building” and possible asbestos removal.
City Council and Planning Commission meetings, as well as Access’ food pantry operations have been held elsewhere since the fire occurred. However, Access has continued to use the parking lot to distribute goods and areas of the Town Hall for storage.
“The demolition and reconstruction activity that will be active on this site is incompatible with the site also being used for food distribution and related storage, so we have advised Access that they will need to cease the pantry operation and relocate all of the food, supplies and equipment by July 7,” Milliman said in the press release.
The city has provided the Town Hall for the operation of the food pantry for $1.00 a year for many years, according to the press release. Milliman said it is his understanding that the pantry using the space has always been considered a temporary arrangement.
Mayor Ayers Flood acknowledged the importance of the food pantry to the Talent community, saying that the city is interested in working with Access to maintain its services. Officials have proposed Talent’s community center parking lot as a more permanent location.
Food programs director for Access Marcy Champion said the parking lot is the only alternative the city has offered and that the agency is searching for alternatives.
“We are actively looking for other locations where we can put a pantry,” she said. “Right now we’re looking for a parking lot, where we can continue to do an outdoor distribution. And we have been seeking a place that would let us do a brick and mortar pantry.”
Champion said that Access had just entered into another agreement with the city which would have kept the food pantry at the Town Hall well into 2025, but the fire shifted their plans.
Other food pantry locations operated by Access in Jackson County can be found on its website.