‘We can’t survive here’: Edmonds Food Bank eyes new location

Published 9:36 am Monday, December 15, 2025

EVERETT — For more than 40 years, the Edmonds Food Bank has operated out of the basement of Edmonds United Methodist Church.

But in the past few years, demand has skyrocketed. Five years ago, the food bank was providing groceries to 1,400 households per month, said Kellie Lewis, marketing and communications manager for the food bank.

Now, it’s providing groceries to 1,400 households per week.

As a result, the food bank doesn’t have enough storage space, and it’s only able to open for six hours each week.

“We can’t survive here,” Edmonds Food Bank Executive Director Casey Davis said at a town hall last month.

Food banks across Snohomish County have faced increased need from federal funding cuts and uncertainties. But the Edmonds Food Bank has been eyeing a new location for years.

In early 2024, the food bank signed an agreement with Edmonds Lutheran Church to build a new location on the church’s property.

“The new site has been on the radar for the leadership for a few years now, just as something we’ll potentially need as we grow and then as the need increases,” said Jeremy Peck, director of development for the food bank.

But last month, the church withdrew from the project.

“Since we signed the MOU in January 2024 with the Edmonds Food Bank, we have been in the discernment process — going through details, sharing and receiving feedback, and faithfully reflecting on how the Spirit is leading our church’s ministries and partnerships,” church leadership wrote in a statement to The Daily Herald. “This process led us to the decision that this is not the right time to move forward with the partnership of constructing a building on our campus to house the Edmonds Food Bank.”

The church will continue to partner with Edmonds Food Bank in other ways, the statement said.

“It wasn’t a perfect spot, we were going to make it work,” Davis said at the town hall. “What it did allow us to do is get the program off the ground.”

Last year, the food bank launched a capital campaign for the new space. To date, the food bank has raised $1.4 million from community members and organizations. The team’s goal is to raise $5 million from the community, which will allow the project to receive state and federal funding, said Jeremy Peck, the food bank’s director of development. The total fundraising goal is $12 million.

Since the Edmonds Lutheran Church location fell through, the project’s facilities committee is searching for a new space. Last month, Davis said they were talking with three different locations, all in Edmonds, and looking for more opportunities.

Lewis envisions the new facility to be a community hub, with meeting space available for partner organizations to provide additional services, including medical, transportation, SNAP application assistance and financial literacy.

“Obviously, we want to be able to provide people with the groceries that they need,” Lewis said. “We also know that this work can’t just be about providing individuals with groceries. We need to create a hub of services so that we can stick to what we do really well.”

Staff plan for the new building to have a commercial kitchen, which would allow the food bank to cut down on food waste by cooking food that would otherwise have to be composted. The food bank also plans to host cooking classes and have a community garden.

“Having a space to learn how to cook, how to grow and have access all week long, that would be a dream come true,” said Ericka San Juan Perez, office assistant at the Latino Educational Training Institute, at the food bank’s town hall.

A larger space would also allow the food bank to host field trips and community groups, Lewis said.

Over the summer, Congress approved new work and age requirements for SNAP benefits, which are expected to affect millions of SNAP recipients across the country. During the government shutdown in October and November, a lapse in SNAP benefit funding caused uncertainty and increased demand at food banks.

“There’s a lot of change there, but underneath all of it too is that uncertainty is being created for individuals that need food,” Lewis said. “That level of chaos, I think we’re going to be dealing with for quite a while.”

While the state allocated $2.2 million to cover the lapse in SNAP benefits, only about $120,000 went to Snohomish County’s 17 food banks, Davis said. Last month, the county gave $100,000 to the food coalition. It helps, but it’s not enough, Davis said.

“With everything that’s happening now, we’re trying to move as fast as we can,” Peck said.

Last year, the food bank received 1.1 million pounds in food donations and distributed 2 million pounds, meaning the food bank had to buy 1 million pounds of food for the year, Davis said. While the food bank has seen recent increases in demand, a new location is also necessary for long-term security, Lewis said.

“Our new space does include being able to handle surges like this, of course,” Lewis said. “But it’s also looking beyond that so that we can build stability in our community, so we can have families and individuals experiencing economic stability, regardless of what’s going on in the world around us.”

Jenna Peterson: 425-339-3486; jenna.peterson@heraldnet.com; X: @jennarpetersonn.