'America's Playground' Is Now The Epicenter Of A Food Desert

Behind the glimmering image of a city built on luxury and excess lies a neighborhood where finding something as standard as fresh fruit or a loaf of bread has become a daily struggle.


The city, nicknamed America's Playground, is a seaside escape of glitzy casinos, celebrity-chef restaurants and unlimited buffets that drew 24 million tourists in 2024, according to the New Jersey Division of Travel and Tourism. In 2015 alone, gambling operators raked in $5.8 billion.


But in the shadow of the boardwalk's neon lights, the city's 38,000 residents deal with a grim truth: Atlantic City has not had an appropriate full-service supermarket in almost 28 years, and it now ranks as New Jersey's second-worst food desert, according to a 2022 state research study by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority.


'Atlantic City does not have a supermarket which's unacceptable,' Mike Suleiman of South Jersey Forward, a regional think tank that studied food insecurity in the area, told WHYY.org. 'It is very important for the city to designate someone for food insecurity.'


For many homeowners, the easy act of grocery shopping turns into a difficult journey, from bus trips over bridges to costly Ubers, or relying on the compassion of relatives.


'Fresh fruits, fresh vegetables, chicken, meats ... you can't truly get that at the corner shops, at the little bodegas, however that's mainly all we have here,' Ori Reyes, a teen who has actually spent her life making the 18-mile trek with her family to a Walmart in Egg Harbor Township, told NJ.com.


'Usually, to discover healthy food that's inexpensive, you do not have much of an option, you need to go to other towns.'


Only 13 percent of homes in the Atlantic City-Hammonton area own a vehicle, 2021 U.S. Census information shows.


Food insecurity has left Atlantic City ranked among the worst food deserts in New Jersey


Atlantic City is understood as America's Playground with its beaches, fairground rides and casinos


Families already having a hard time to find fresh food in Atlantic City state decreases to SNAP advantages could press lots of deeper into cravings


Despite billions flowing through Atlantic City's casinos and traveler dining establishments each year, state they can't even buy fresh groceries in their own city


For locals like Rosetta Butler, a 58-year-old who resides in the Atlantic Marina real estate complex, salvation comes in the kind of a 40-foot converted bus.


Operated by Virtua Health, the 'Eat Well' mobile supermarket pulls into her block on Fridays.


'This right here, it's a godsend,' she told NJ.com, revealing off a bag filled with bread, peanut butter, and vegetables.


'It's an actually big true blessing for individuals like me, who can't make it to the marketplace quickly ... you know, for people who can't drive, are older, or have health issues.'


In 2021, officials collected for a victorious groundbreaking of an $18.7 million ShopRite grocery store at Baltic and Indiana Avenues. Governor Phil Murphy hailed it as a turning point.


But within a year, the deal collapsed. The operator, Village Super Market, pulled out after the Casino Redevelopment Investment Authority (CRDA) rejected its request for subsidies. Residents were left blindsided.


'Not having a grocery store after telling citizens there would be one is ravaging,' Mayor Marty Small Sr. informed NJ.com. 'But our supermarket dreams are just postponed, not dead. We continue to strive to discover a long-term option.'


Advocates caution that looming cuts to federal food help (SNAP) could deepen the crisis.


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Community groups and mobile markets are actioning in to supply fruit, veggies, and dairy to struggling families (Pictured: Event offering social services to homeless veterans at All Wars Memorial Building, in Atlantic City Wednesday May 17, 2017)


Nonprofits and churches are feeding hundreds weekly as need for assistance continues to grow


'This is hurting single mothers and others throughout the nation and in pockets of New Jersey, it's going to be extremely bad,' U.S. Rep. Bonnie Watson-Coleman told NJ. com.


The Washington-based Food Research & Action Center has also sounded alarms, writing: 'SNAP is not just a security net for susceptible locals - it's an important financial driver and stabilizing force for entire communities'.


Grassroots groups are filling the spaces. Alicia 'Lisa' Newcomb, head of the not-for-profit C.R.O.P.S., has actually worked with farmers and corner stores to equip much healthier choices, even securing brand-new fridges for small grocers.


'Grocery shopping looks various in different neighborhoods,' she informed WHYY.org. 'We dealt with one corner store to get multiple brand-new refrigerators which owner said he desired to be the place where his customers can get excellent food.'


State officials are likewise experimenting with creative repairs. Tara Colton, primary economic gatekeeper at the NJEDA, points to refrigerated grocery lockers, comparable to Amazon pick-up boxes, as a possible design.


'Similar to there's nobody cause to food insecurity ... there's also not only one option,' Colton informed NJ.com.


Meanwhile, the operator of Atlantic City's Save A Lot, Shawn Rinnier, intends to broaden by 7,000 square feet. 'If we're able to pull it off, it 'd be a really great shop with a lot more variety,' he told NJ.com. 'And I believe individuals here would be really delighted with it.'


At Sister Jean's Kitchen, the truth appears. Dozens line up daily for meals. Reverend John Scotland, the executive director of the not-for-profit. who runs the community kitchen area, stated demand never ever disappears.


All the enjoyable of Atlantic City's boardwalk and piers is seen above


Restaurants on Atlantic City's boardwalk are seen above


'Today, we are open three days a week for 3 hours a day and we're busy the entire time,' he informed WHYY.org.


'We will feed individuals since they are starving. We make no judgment of whether they are worthwhile or not. That is what we will continue to do.'


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