New Home will unify food handling operations, an expanded volunteer center and office space under one roof to improve efficiency and service
After an extensive real estate search, Second Harvest of Silicon Valley has entered a contract with South Bay Development Co. to purchase a property in the Alviso area of North San Jose. The 10.4 acre site located at 4553 and 4653 North First Street will serve as the food bank’s new home, unifying most of its food handling operations, currently spread among three locations throughout San Jose. Plans for the new home also include an expanded volunteer center and offices for operations. The plan does not impact Second Harvest’s fourth location in San Carlos, which supports services in San Mateo County.
The property is currently approved by the City of San Jose for one three story and one five story multi-use office building, totaling 240,000 square feet of commercial space. South Bay is submitting updated plans to the City of San Jose including three, connected single story buildings totaling approximately 250,000 square feet, that would accommodate Second Harvest’s non-profit activities.
The COVID-19 crisis has dramatically increased the number of people who now rely on Second Harvest’s services. Since the pandemic hit, the organization has doubled the amount of food it supplies to the community, providing free groceries to nearly 500,000 people every month—twice the number it reached pre-pandemic. Given the economic devastation low-income households have experienced due to the pandemic combined with the incredibly high cost of living in Silicon Valley, the food bank is expecting a heightened level of food insecurity to continue for the foreseeable future.
To address the ongoing need in the community, Second Harvest has been working on long-term capacity planning, which includes the vision for a site in Santa Clara County that would allow the food bank to unify most of its food handling operations in the South Bay to improve its efficiency.
“While we have managed to meet the incredible need of our community through temporary operational shifts, the inefficiencies of working across three locations in San Jose are considerable and costly,” said Leslie Bacho, CEO of Second Harvest of Silicon Valley. “Operating three warehouses in one city requires duplicative equipment, inventory and processes to manage. We have also been working with inadequate infrastructure to address the high level of need such as insufficient freezer, refrigeration and office space. Having a permanent location with increased capacity also allows us to flex when we are required to respond and support future emergencies and disasters.”
One of the largest food banks in the nation, Second Harvest works with over 300 partners in the community to distribute over 12 million pounds of nutritious groceries every month to families in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. The majority of the food they provide is fresh produce, protein and dairy.
“For 47 years, Second Harvest has been the hub of the charitable food system in Silicon Valley and their work is vital in keeping food on our neighbor’s tables,” said San José Mayor Sam Liccardo. “During the pandemic, Second Harvest became a lifeline to thousands. We are grateful for their continued support and are excited to see their expansion in Alviso.”
Successfully executing Second Harvest’s mission relies on having strong and trustworthy ties to the community, and Alviso is one of the many neighborhoods Second Harvest has served for decades. It currently provides food to Redemption Jubilee Church, which operates a food pantry two days a week serving about 300-400 local households. Second Harvest also operates a free grocery distribution site at Our Lady Star of the Sea Parish one day a month that reaches about 150 local households.
“Second Harvest has a long-standing history of partnership and service in the communities they serve, including Alviso where they have worked with local organizations to distribute nutritious food to our residents for over three decades,” said San Jose Councilmember David Cohen. “I’m excited that the food bank is looking to become even more deeply rooted in our community by making their permanent home in Alviso.”
Food bank officials point out that while the new location will be an operational hub for distributing food to the community through its nonprofit partners across Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties, it won’t be providing food directly to individuals and families at this location. “In light of what people have seen in the media during the pandemic, we want the community to understand this is not going to be a location where our clients can come to get food or where neighbors would see long lines of cars.”
실리콘밸리의 세컨드 하베스트(Second Harvest of Silicon Valley)에 대하여
1974년에 설립된 Second Harvest of Silicon Valley는 미국 최대 규모의 푸드 뱅크 중 하나이며 지역 기아 종식에 있어 신뢰받는 비영리 리더입니다. 이 조직은 산타클라라 및 산마테오 카운티 전역의 900개 이상의 장소에서 약 400명의 파트너 네트워크를 통해 영양가 있는 식품을 배포합니다. 실리콘 밸리의 엄청나게 비싼 생활비와 팬데믹 시대 정부 지원의 급격한 감소로 인해 Second Harvest는 매달 평균 약 500,000명에게 서비스를 제공하고 있습니다. Second Harvest는 또한 사람들을 연방 영양 프로그램 및 기타 식량 자원에 연결하고 지역, 주 및 국가 차원의 기아 방지 정책을 옹호합니다. Second Harvest가 실리콘 밸리의 엄청난 수요에 어떻게 대응하고 있는지 자세히 알아보려면 shfb.org를 방문하세요.
실리콘밸리의 기아 문제를 취재하신다면, 현지 상황에 대해 이야기할 수 있는 전문 대변인을 제공해 드릴 수 있습니다.
다음 주소로 Diane Baker Hayward에게 문의하세요. dbakerhayward@shfb.org 또는 408-266-8866, 내선 368.