A food desert no more: Second Tarentum grocery store opens

Three months ago, Tarentum was considered a food desert.

Now, the borough has a second grocery store along East Sixth Avenue, just three blocks from another that opened in May.

MacKay’s Market, owned by Harrison resident Linda Gromley, will celebrate a soft launch from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday, with a vision of providing access to fresh food, particularly for residents without transportation.

“We have nothing at this end of the borough,” Gromley said of her building that sits near the Brackenridge border.

“You see people walking all the time down to the gas station for fast food.”

MacKay’s joins Horizon Market, which sits in the 300 block of East Sixth Avenue, near Corbet Street.

Gromley doesn’t see the proximity as a problem.

“You see tons of people who walk across the Tarentum Bridge every day to get to Giant Eagle,” she said. “There’s no public transportation down here at all.”

The closest PRT bus travels under the Tarentum Bridge and stops along East Fourth Avenue. It doesn’t cross the bridge to get to the Giant Eagle just on the other side.

Store shelves aren’t completely stocked just yet, but Gromley plans to sell fresh produce, bakery items, milk, shelf-stable meals and eventually meats, cheeses and grab-and-go sandwiches.

A baker, Gromley will feature a revolving display of her “famous brownies” and pies with made-from-scratch crust.

According to Pittsburgh-based nonprofit Food21.org, markets can do more than offer access to healthy menu items. Food can work as a development tool for small towns, according to the group, sparking other start-up businesses.

Food21 founder Audry Murrell said people need to develop solutions to eliminate food deserts in more innovative and comprehensive ways.

“This includes using ‘place-based investing’ that meets the unique needs of our communities by devoting resources and capital that are specifically dedicated to producing local impact,” said Murrell, a professor of business administration at the University of Pittsburgh.

“Helping communities like Tarentum support small grocery stores is a necessary step in improving access and enhancing the local food economy within underserved communities in our region.”

Similarly, the research nonprofit Institute for Local Self-Reliance said small grocery stores can make a big impact by supporting the local economy and keeping spending local.

Markets also can double as social hubs and make towns a more desirable place to live.

“I’ve thought about getting a brick-and-mortar (store) for a long time,” Gromley said. “I saw this building, and I loved the storefront.”

The yellow brick building, across railroad tracks from the Tarentum Water Plant, was built in the early 1900s as a family market — a detail Gromley finds serendipitous.

Longtime residents might recognize the space as the old automotive Speed Shop, which operated for years before the building sat vacant the last decade.

Gromley has lived in Harrison’s Natrona section for decades, always working in the food service industry. She ran a diner at the Butler flea market and operates an in-home bakery, whipping up banana bread and blueberry loaves to sell at festivals and flea markets. She also offers gluten-free and sugar-free sweets for diet-conscious customers.

Gromley said she often thought about opening a store near her home, but it never worked out.

Rachel Brown, Gromley’s daughter, said, “finally everything lined up to give this place a go.”

For years, Brown helped Gromley secure furniture and fixtures to fill a future store. Many of the items were found during Brown’s work for Guardian Angels Parish to deconstruct five closed churches.

“We found a perfect glass-front display case at Holy Family in Creighton and kitchen shelves at St. Lad’s in Natrona,” Brown said. “Why buy new when you can put this perfectly good stuff to use?”

Shelving, sinks and other items were socked away in a storage unit Gromley found.

“When we got the space, I reimagined a bakery because there’s enough room to offer so much more,” she said.

Locally sourced groceries will be sold alongside Turner’s Dairy products, Coke products, pet food, small appliances, school supplies and single-serve items that people can grab for a snack on the go.

Already on the shelves are bread from Vibo’s Bakery in Brackenridge, honey from Russellton Bee Works and produce from Pat’s Perfect Produce in Allegheny Township.

Because Tarentum is a small store, Gromley said she can’t buy in bulk from distributors to lower her costs, but she’s also not gouging customers.

A gallon of milk, for example, costs her $4.50. She’s selling it for $4.70.

“I’m trying to keep prices as low as I can,” she said. “I’m not looking to make a million dollars. We want to offer healthy food and convenience.”