Supervisors deny tax funds for local farmers’ food hub

The Albemarle County Board of Supervisors shot down a group’s request Wednesday to use $80,000 of taxpayers’ money for a food hub that would distribute local crops.

Supervisors discussed guidelines for distributing $250,000 to stimulate the local economy and create jobs. Some of the speakers during a public hearing supported the proposal by the food hub, which would have received $80,000 of that sum, though others said it would be a shaky investment that should be funded privately.

Kathy Rash with Forever Albemarle, a coalition of county landowners, said the group doesn’t think the food hub is a bad idea, but argued, “This should be a private enterprise, not paid for by taxpayers.”

Supervisor Dennis S. Rooker said he didn’t see the proposal as a good investment, so he couldn’t ask taxpayers to invest in something he wouldn’t invest in himself.

Supervisors said that the economic development fund is largely designed to offset underemployment and unemployment in the county, provide high-wage jobs for residents and generate tax revenue. To apply for funds, applicants were asked to submit business plans, and proposals had to meet criteria for providing tangible benefits to the community. Applicants were encouraged to furnish data about tax revenues that project proposals would generate.

However, supervisors said Wednesday that the money shouldn’t be used for high-risk venture capital projects and would be better suited for major county projects that would receive matching state funds.

Kate Collier, executive director of The Local Food Hub project, said that it’s a nonprofit that would make locally grown food more accessible to residents.

“This is an organization that will support farmers,” she said.

Collier said that the food hub would generate $375,000 in sales in its first year and more than $1 million in its fifth.

The $80,000 contribution from the county would have covered about 15 percent of the total project cost, according to the proposal, which states that the hub’s mission is to support existing farms and “attract, train and support the next generation of farmers.”Collier said that she expects the food hub will survive without the contribution from the county. The group will try to raise the money from other sources, she said.

“We’re going to continue to kind of activate the citizens to try and get this funded,” she said. “If the government isn’t going to do it, we’ll have to do it ourselves.”