Arroyo Food Co-op Leases Former Pasadena Market, Continues Fundraising to Open

Five years in the making, the Arroyo Food Co-op announced Monday that they leased a former Pasadena grocery store space and are launching their capital campaign to open the member-owned market.

The co-op will provide organic, sustainable, and locally sourced products along with humanely raised meats, fair trade items and non-GMO produce. Features such as a deli, coffee bar, and community space are also being considered. 

"We looked high and low to find just the right spot to open the Co-op,” said Tricia Keane, president of the Co-op’s Board of Directors, in a statement. “We wanted it to be as close to our members as possible, and conveniently located for members of the public. … The former George's Market site has all the things we were looking for—and then some.”

Over 98 percent of Co-op members who voted gave their approval for the Board of Directors to sign the lease on the approximately 4,900 square-foot building at 494 North Wilson Avenue at Villa Street, the Arroyo Food Co-op said.

The Co-op currently has 550 members, both full- and partially-vested but is looking for more as it needs to raise additional funds to open.

Loans from existing members will provide the bulk of the approximately $70,000 needed to refurbish and renovate the site and $251,000 for operational expenses—mostly inventory—but extra members and donors will be needed.

“With the community’s continued support, we’ll clear these remaining milestones, establish a significant resource for healthy food, and provide yet one more example of how well the cooperative business model works for a local economy,” said Patrick Reagan, Co-op CFO and founder, in the statement.

A devoted group of volunteers, led by an eight-member board of directors, is leading the effort to open the Arroyo Food Co-op. The Co-op was formally established as a California Consumer Cooperative Corporation in 2009.

The Co-op shared that everyone is welcome to shop at the co-op, but those who make the investment to become member-owners receive additional benefits, including patronage refunds during profitable years. The full investment to join is $300; however the co-op offers a payment plan of $30 per year.

For more information about the Co-op’s location, its capital campaign—including how to make a loan—and becoming a member, visit www.arroyofoodcoop.com.