By board member Dave Toler

Expanding our Eastside Store is a big deal and it’s important to the Board that we hear from our members about the many aspects involved with expanding. Member preferences will serve as our guidepost as we further develop our expansion plans. The Board will be utilizing several approaches to get as much feedback from as many members as we can including online surveys, social media queries, online webinars, and Member Townhalls.

From mid-December through mid-January, we ran an online Expansion Survey. The Board and staff want to thank all our members who filled out our survey. We heard from over 2,000 of you and we wanted to share some important points we heard from you.

First, 87% of you are in support of expanding. 13% were opposed. (There were 188 neutral responses.) Secondly, 83% of you are in support of expanding at a new location within one mile of our existing location, and 17% were opposed. (There were 594 neutral responses.)

We also wanted to know what outcomes of an expansion are most important to you and there were four outcomes that represented a majority of members: Reducing overcrowding/more aisle and shelf space (68%), selling more local and/or organic foods (66%), adding a service deli (50%), and a bigger produce selection (66%).

Other popular outcomes included: Hot Food Bar (43%), More Parking (34%), and Keeping Membership Affordable (31%).

The Co-op has hired consultants from the National Cooperative Grocers (NCG) to assist us in the technical aspects of this expansion project.

For nearly 20 years, NCG has assisted over 60 food co-ops across the nation to successfully expand, so we’re leaning into their advice and suggestions to help us navigate the complexities of this endeavor. As we’ve been exploring the possibility of expanding onsite, we’ve learned that City of Olympia zoning and building code requirements present many challenges, and staying here may not be feasible. In addition, the member survey does indicate stronger support for relocating to another location. Therefore, the Board will now consider placing a heavier focus on relocation.

With your continued input and the technical expertise of NCG, architectural designers, and other professional contractors, OFC is dedicated to achieving a successful and sustainable expansion of our Eastside Store. We’ll continue to reach out to our members in a variety of ways this year to ensure this expansion reflects your values and your preferences, and to keep the Co-op going strong for decades to come

Please feel free to contact expansion@olympiafood.coop with any
questions or comments. Thanks!