When the City of Cleveland recently closed the Eastside Market, a grocery store in the Glenville neighborhood overseen by a troubled nonprofit, officials had to quickly run a rescue mission. The objective: Get the food left on the shelves into the hands of the needy before it would spoil. 

The night before it closed, the store appeared to be stocked at nearly full capacity: clementines, lemons and strawberries lined the produce shelves. Canned, bagged and frozen food remained, too: potato chips, applesauce, ice cream. 

The city arranged to donate food from the market to the Hunger Network, which collects and distributes food that would otherwise go to waste. The Hunger Network handled most of it – a huge haul for the nonprofit, which removed six to eight pallets of frozen food alone, said Roger Himmelright, the organization’s food rescue program director.

“This is probably the largest rescue we’ve ever done, so it’s really exciting,” said Julie Johnson, the network’s CEO. 

The network took the shelf-stable items, such as spices and baking supplies, to its food rescue kitchen near Euclid and 55th – a brand new part of its operation that turns ingredients that would otherwise be wasted into full meals. Those meals are then frozen to be distributed to food pantries, Johnson said.  

City workers box up meat at the East Side Market for the Hunger Network.
City workers box up meat at the East Side Market for the Hunger Network. Credit: Celia Hack / Signal Cleveland

Much of the perishable food – fruits, veggies, dairy, frozen goods, pre-cooked meals – would be distributed throughout the dozens of nonprofit agencies and pantries the Hunger Network works with. Some also went to the network’s own MidTown Market food pantry, which operates like a grocery store.  

Some food did end up in the dumpster. A city worker wheeled a grocery cart full of expired pork neckbones and other meats to the garbage truck. While talking with Signal Cleveland, Johnson spied collard greens and lettuce in the trash.  

“Anything that’s still good, please do not throw away,” Johnson told some city workers by the trash truck. She ran back inside to tell the others. 

Fatimah Shabazz-Razen unloads bakery items to take to senior residents. Credit: Celia Hack

Why Cleveland forced closure of the grocery store

Cleveland chose not to renew its lease with Northeast Ohio Neighborhood Health Services, the financially troubled nonprofit that ran the market through a for-profit subsidiary. The city said it owed thousands of dollars in unpaid taxes and utilities. 

The food in the store is not technically city property, according to Sarah Johnson, the city’s chief communications officer. But the city stepped in when NEON failed to communicate its plans for saving the food, Johnson said. 

The evening before the store closed, NEON board member Charles Lytle told Signal Cleveland that it would donate the food if the store did have to close. Signal Cleveland emailed and called Willie Austin, NEON’s CEO, to discuss the handoff but he did not respond. 

Pre-cooked meals, baked goods go to senior housing

The Hunger Network tapped volunteers and advocates to distribute some of the most perishable food, like baked goods and prepared meals, to senior citizens. 

Fatimah Shabazz-Razen and Ehwazz Razen showed up at the Eastside Market at 11 a.m. Thursday morning to box up the goods. The married couple runs a senior program in partnership with a local mental health nonprofit, Kindred Harbor, and their own nonprofit, the Beautiful Cycle. 

They drove the food directly from the market to a local community center and two apartment buildings that serve seniors and people with disabilities. It was a hit, Shabazz-Razen said. Seniors dug through meatloaf, pork chop and chicken meal options and reveled in the desert selection. Shabazz-Razen couldn’t pass out the food fast enough.  

Senior residents at Five Pointe Community Center eagerly lined up to try donated meals from the Eastside Market. (Photo courtesy of Shabazz-Razen)

“They were so happy. And they kept coming up to us and saying, ‘Thank you so much for everything y’all doing,’” Shabazz-Razen said. “They said, ‘Are you doing this because it’s Easter?’” 

Shabazz-Razen and her husband typically bring bagels from the Hunger Network on Wednesdays, but this was a special treat. 

“Our seniors, unfortunately, especially in the inner community, they have been part of the forgotten,” Shabazz-Razen said. “And so to do things like this, especially offering these beautiful desserts … they were very appreciative.”

Meat that had passed its sell-by date, like this pork, had to be thrown out. Credit: Celia Hack

What’s next for the Eastside Market?  

Cleveland City Council Member Kevin Conwell, whose district includes the Eastside Market, and the city’s public health director want to hear from residents about the future of the building. The city already said it plans to seek a new partner — hopefully a grocer — to move into the market.  

At a ward meeting Thursday night, Conwell asked residents what they would like to see in the market. 

Barbara Matthews, a Collinwood resident, told the leaders that she thinks a new market should focus on fresh meat, fresh produce and lower prices. Prices at the market that just closed were too high, she said.  

“My husband loves cornflakes, so I went over and looked at the cornflakes,” Matthews said of her experience there. “And I refused to buy them because they were almost double the price that they were, like, at Walmart.” 

To provide feedback on what you’d like to see at the Eastside Market, email dmargolius@clevelandohio.govand/or zpixler@clevelandohio.gov.

Health Reporter (she/her)
I aim to cover a broad array of factors influencing Clevelanders’ health, from the traditional healthcare systems to issues like housing and the environment. As a recent transplant from my home state of Kansas, I hope to learn the ins-and-outs of the city’s complex health systems – and break them down for readers as I do.