It was a mixture of celebration and activism at the ribbon cutting for the new Alameda Food Bank (AFB) location at 677 West Ranger Avenue on Thursday, November 13. Just across the way is the food bank’s former location; its outdoor waiting area was flooded by a pool of rain.
During a speech, AFB Board Director Craig Hotti presented a copy of a 1977 newspaper article from the Alameda Times-Star. The clip stated that Alameda’s food bank, then operating out of a closet at the Twin Towers United Methodist Church on Oak Street, was still looking for permanent quarters.
“48 years later, here we are,” Hotti said.
The new building is close to completing its first month of operation and has been running more smoothly and effectively than AFB team members had anticipated.
“The shoppers I’ve talked to are amazed,” Hotti said. “It was pretty good over there (at the old location), but it was also cold and dingy and ugly and smaller.”…