PORT WASHINGTON, Wis. — A local food pantry is just a few months away from moving into a new home that is more than three times larger than its original location.
The Food Pantry Inc. of Port Washington will move this Summer into a new home on Grand Avenue. The organization purchased the former Aurora Health Center and is in the process of renovating the space into a full-service pantry.
The cost of the property and the renovations tallied close to $1.2 million in total, according to the charity's leaders.
Watch: Port Washington food pantry close to moving to new home
Board president Steve Hansen said they started looking for a new home four years ago, after realizing that their current space was not large enough to meet demand.
"On a typical month, we have between 15 and 20,000 pounds of food that come in and out of [our current location]," Hansen said. "They've done a remarkable job getting to where we are at today, but you can only do so much with limited space."
Since its founding four decades ago, the organization has occupied space in the basement of the parish offices at St. John XXIII Catholic Parish. Executive Director Marcia Nosko says the new space will allow them to expand services to the roughly 100 families they serve.
"We would like to provide certain health screenings," Nosko said. "We would like to teach them how to cook. We're going to have a commercial kitchen in our new space."
Nosko says the organization is targeting a July opening for their new location. Construction crews are currently in the process of renovating the building.
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