The city promised to locate a new supermarket when the 1st Avenue Hy-Vee closed

Cedar Rapids, Iowa – This week, three Hy-Vee stores in Eastern Iowa will close.

Due to financial difficulties, the company chose to close its locations in Cedar Rapids, Waterloo, and Davenport. U.S. Census data indicates that all three of the locations are in high-poverty zones.

The corporate headquarters of Hy-Vee has proposed ways to support the communities in their transition once the stores close.

• Hy-Vee will provide a free shuttle service from the First Ave. location to the Oakland Road Hy-Vee. It will only run three days a week, four hours at a time until September 1.
• There will be free grocery delivery for people living within one mile of the store, but they’ll have to sign up and order around $25 worth of groceries. Free delivery will last for one year.
• Free pharmacy delivery will continue.
• The company won’t restrict who can own the building next, meaning another grocery store would not be prevented from using the site.
• Hy-Vee will partner with HACAP to support a mobile food pantry in the parking lot twice a month during July and August.

However, city officials stated that they were looking for a long-term solution, and they are merely band-aid solutions.

The Cedar Rapids business has served the neighborhood for more than 20 years. Shoppers at that location claimed it would leave a significant void in the neighborhood.

“I hate to see this store go like that,” said William Newton.

Newton claimed to have spent eight years working at the 1st Avenue location. In addition, he walks five minutes to and from the store to shop. He was going to take the shuttle bus now.

“It’s going to wear on me a little bit,” he said. “It’s going to be kind of terrible.”

September marks the end of that shuttle service. To address the demand in the community, the city now claimed it was in communication with charitable organizations and local and national grocery stores.

“We aren’t talking to anybody but food stores and retailers that sell food,” said Mayor Tiffany O’Donnell.

According to Mayor O’Donnell, the city will personally deliver fliers to residents in the surrounding communities using its employees and volunteers starting next month. According to her, they wanted to ensure that everyone was aware of the resources that would be accessible. She added that neighborhood gatherings in Wellington Heights and Mound View were being planned by the city.

“We can’t underscore enough the importance of this in this neighborhood and our intensity has never waned at the city,” she said. “We have to find a replacement for that store yesterday.”

Just what Newton expressed wanting to see is a grocery store reopening here.

“I want it to be a grocery store where they have a kitchen,” said Newton. “Where you can just come down there, get your meals, and sit down and eat.”

According to O’Donnell, Hy-Vee has also stated that it intends to give HACAP any unsold merchandise.