AUBURN, Wash. — A 6,600-square-foot building at the corner of Auburn Way and 28th Street has a new sign for the Auburn Food Bank.
It’s where executive director Debbie Christian planned to move their operations to already, but she said the Food Bank is short about $800,000.
The Auburn Food Bank has been crammed into a small space in the middle of a housing complex for several decades. The refrigerator and freezer space is limited and boxes of food are stacked tightly against the walls.
"We're elbow to elbow,” Christian said. “A lot of ‘excuse me’ are happening all day long."
They store overflow produce, bread, and pastries outside because the building has no room. There’s a small horseshoe-shaped line for people to grab their groceries.
Christian said they are forced to turn down some food donations because of a lack of space.
That’s why the food bank decided to make more than a $1 million investment in the new building on Auburn Way.
In January of 2020, the food bank partnered with the City of Auburn to sublease the new location a few blocks away from the current Food Bank.
The pandemic delayed the transition, and the food bank finalized the permits in 2022 and began remodeling in January.
However, initial projections for contractors and venders changed with rising inflation and they didn’t qualify for the bank loan they expected.
"All those bids made a change, because they changed costs,” Christian said. “Come June and July I was out of money.”
Short several hundred thousand dollars, Christian said they had to let go of two of their seven staff members. The food bank also cut back on the financial aid they provide for some families. Heading into the holidays, Christian said they likely won’t have enough money for their annual Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners.
Christian said they’re making tough decisions to feed more families in the future.
The new building has double the refrigerator space and a loading dock that will look more like a grocery store than a crammed kitchen when families come in.
"We're so excited about what the future could be. We just have to get to the future,” Christian said.
The Auburn Food Bank accepts donations in person and online.