KRMG In-Depth: A revolutionary micro-grocery concept approved by Tulsa City Council

A subscription based micro-grocery stocked by local farmers and utilized by residents of a neighborhood that has a long reputation as a food desert - Bazar is a unique concept which tackles a number of issues, including childhood hunger.

Wednesday, the Tulsa City Council voted to approve the use of $500,000 in community funds for District 3 to help get Bazar built and operational.

[ Hear the KRMG In-Depth Report on Bazar HERE, or use the player below ]

Tulsa Metropolitan Ministries initially broke ground at the location, 5247 E. Pine Street (near Pine and Yale) in April.

Now, construction can begin in earnest, and the hope is to open this fall.

“It is a kind of a slightly different angle on addressing what is an issue that everybody knows about,” Rev. Chris Miller with TMM told KRMG Thursday, “food deserts, and the issue of food access in particular parts of the town.”

Bazar will be subscription-based; members will get a card, which they can attach to a credit or debit card, or charge with cash or SNAP funds.

That subscription will be free for people who live in the area, but will cost $25 otherwise, according to District 3 Councilor Krista Patrick, who spoke about Bazar in Wednesday’s Public Works Committee meeting.

The store will consist of vending machines, stocked by local farmers who sign up to provide their produce, much like a farmer’s market with climate control and extended hours, Miller said.

“The whole idea is trying to cut out (the) middle man between the farmer and a person wanting or needing produce,” he said.

It also provide an oasis in an area that has long suffered the moniker of “food desert,” because of a lack of any fresh produce, meat, or poultry readily available to residents.

Moreover, Bazar will offer free wi-fi and electricity for food trucks, Patrick said, who agree to help provide meals to children who live attend the nearby schools.

Each child registered with the program will qualify for a free meal once a day, 365 days a year.

The food trucks will be available to the public, so they’ll be able to profit, if things go according to plan.

This isn’t intended as a solution for the entire city, or even for all of north Tulsa, Miller stressed, but it’s hoped the concept will be successful and then expand into other parts of the city.

It wouldn’t be the first TMM project to take off and become its own entity, not by a long shot.

“(TMM) has a track record of looking at gaps in the community and trying to fill them,” Miller told KRMG. “Many of those projects have become their own non-profits. So, the Tulsa Day Center, Youth Services of Tulsa, RSVP, the local chapter of Meals on Wheels - all of these and many more started as projects through TMM, so this is just another chapter in that book.”