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View ProfilesPublished August 30, 2023 at 10:00 a.m.
St. Johnsbury is having a moment. Since the start of the pandemic, the former factory town's central district has sprouted 31 businesses; launched a flourishing series of Friday night block parties; and begun attracting young, artsy types who already have opened an upscale vintage shop, a quirky brewery and, of course, a record store. It's the type of grassroots renaissance that many Vermont towns dream about.
So, to many residents, it seemed only fitting that the up-and-coming town should get its own proper food co-op, à la Hunger Mountain in Montpelier or City Market in Burlington. A determined group has spent the past four years laying the foundation for the Caledonia Food Co-op, conceived as a community-owned store that would support local growers and vendors and serve as a place for residents to gather. The dream is ambitious: a place with about 12,000 square feet of space and 60 to 70 parking spots.
Co-op organizers set their sights on a shuttered Walgreens on Railroad Street, whose downtown setting seemed to fit the bill. The building has been vacant since the pharmacy chain closed the branch in late February. But the building's New York-based owner — who did not respond to a request for comment — was also in conversation with an unidentified dollar-store chain that expressed interest in the same spot, just minutes away from a Family Dollar.
In the face of possible competition from a chain store, the board of the co-op sent an impassioned letter earlier this month imploring the property's owner, R&R Vermont Management, to consider selling to a locally rooted group. The owner came around, but with strict terms: The co-op had to come up with $350,000 within two weeks — by August 28 — in order to hold the property through an option-to-purchase agreement.
The co-op board internally raised $175,000 through grants, board member donations and membership fees but needed to find another $175,000 through community investment. Complicating matters, the organizers are limited to accepting funds from just 25 individual lenders in order to comply with a Vermont statute protecting residents from risky investments.
A period of frenzied fundraising followed, including energetic appeals asking locals to invest in the enterprise. The pitch worked: The proposed Caledonia Food Co-op met its fundraising goal this week — soliciting and confirming lenders until the last minute — and appears in a solid position to secure the property. As of Tuesday, the group was still negotiating with the owner for more time so it could conduct an environmental review of the property.
The road to complete the purchase and make good on the local investments will be long. Even if the option-to-purchase agreement is worked out, the co-op board will have to come up with another $1.9 million to purchase the building by next year, and then more funds to renovate it.
For members of the proposed co-op, the essential challenge boils down to ensuring that downtown St. Johnsbury continues its promising upswing — and outmaneuvering a dollar store is the first step.
"We sense a new energy," said Jay Craven, a prominent local filmmaker and co-op board member. "The town is at a tipping point. We believe that the co-op will really bring forward momentum to St. Johnsbury."
The town is already home to a family-owned grocery, the White Market, and a small natural-food store, Natural Provisions. But board members think the co-op will serve as an important link in the food ecosystem.
The vision for it first emerged in 2019, when a group of community members bonded over a love of locally grown food. Among them was Eric Skovsted, who owns and operates an organic farm in Barnet along with his wife, Mary. Skovsted, now the board chair for the nascent Caledonia Food Co-op, believes community-owned food markets are critical for sustaining small-scale farms, especially in the Northeast Kingdom.
"[Co-ops] really do allow farms to grow and become profitable where otherwise that business might be marginal," Skovsted said.
But beyond the vision of a grocery with the power to nurture nearby farming, Skovsted and his peers saw an opportunity to use local investment to ensure St. Johnsbury's health.
In the early and mid-1900s, St. Johnsbury was a hub of statewide activity, a gateway to the rest of the Northeast Kingdom. But when business waned for the three major companies in town — Fairbanks Scales, a maple sugar candy company and a firm that made candlepins for bowling — St. Johnsbury took it hard. Downtown buildings emptied, and the local population dwindled by nearly 2,000 between 1950 and 2020.
Over the past five years, though, there's been new energy in the district. On a stroll down Railroad Street — St. Johnsbury's main drag — one might pass a live music event or a meeting of the NEK Young Professionals Network, which is run by Geoffrey Sewake, the co-owner of downtown brewery Whirligig. Residents see the new grocery as a way to keep the momentum going.
"The co-op is a way for everyone to participate in the excitement and the revitalization in St. Johnsbury," Craven said. "The whole idea of 1,500 to 2,000 people sharing ownership in one place? I mean, wow!"
Promoters of the co-op received more than $70,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to produce a feasibility study, find a site and boost membership.
It currently has almost 800 members, each of whom purchased a $100 share. Nearly 80 people flocked to an "emergency informational meeting" to hash out the details of the Walgreens purchase earlier this month, with 44 more tuning in via Zoom.
Despite the building's $2.2 million total price tag and required renovation, the board considers the Walgreens property to be its best option. Last year, the co-op had its sights set on a different downtown location, on Bay Street, that would have required building from the ground up. But as construction costs mounted, the team grew wary of a new building. Despite the need to fix up the former Walgreens, the board reasoned, overall costs would be lower.
"We've basically been asking members to see the potential, and that's exactly what everyone who showed up at that emergency meeting did," Craven said.
During the successful campaign, Craven noticed that many of those pledging money were in their thirties and forties. "I think that's a fabulous sign," he said.
Among the investors is Rep. Scott Campbell (D-St. Johnsbury), who has been loosely involved in the co-op since its inception four years ago.
"We have a dollar store," Campbell said. "We don't need another one. What we need is local businesses."
Board members acknowledge that much work lies ahead, but they remain committed to the larger vision of a revivified St. Johnsbury.
"I'm avidly interested in a co-op," Campbell said of his decision to invest. "But I'm most interested in the future viability of St. Johnsbury and the surrounding area. St. Johnsbury used to be the hub of this whole region, and there's no reason why it shouldn't be again."
The original print version of this article was headlined "Buying Into St. Johnsbury | Locals wanted to create a food co-op — but a dollar store stood in the way"
Tags: News, Our Towns, St. Johnsbury, Caledonia Food Co-op
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