What Happened
Problem
Between 2023 and 2025, Lake City lost three full-service pharmacies with extended hours and one supermarket, creating a critical gap in food and pharmacy access in the heart of the neighborhood.
Limitations of Remaining Resources
- Pharmacies: Limited hours, clinic enrollment required for new patients, and small specialty pharmacies not designed to meet neighborhood-scale demand.
- Farmers markets: Seasonal and limited hours, so residents cannot rely on them for consistent access to fresh food.
- Largest small grocer (Grocery Outlet): Closeout sourcing and variable fresh food selection means it functions as a small grocer.
- Small grocers: Typically offer limited selection and fewer healthy options compared to full-service supermarkets, and often at higher prices (see 2019 UW Food Availability study).
Solution
- • Expand Pharmacy Access Now
- • Establish a Community-Centered Task Force
- • Implement Policy Changes
Expand Pharmacy Access Now
Support existing limited-hour independent pharmacies to expand service and operational capacity through extended hours and increased staffing.
Task Force
Create a community-centered task force to identify permanent grocery + pharmacy models prioritizing re-use of existing infrastructure, access, and union labor.
Policy Changes
- • Ban restrictive covenants on former grocery/pharmacy sites; expedite permits
- • Adopt time-based pharmacy access standards (minutes, not miles)
- • Create pharmacy "Any Willing Provider" state law; ensure QHP network adequacy includes pharmacies
Lake City Library
Virgil Park
Lake City & 95th Mural
Lake City Sculpture