Millbrook Gets $500,000 Grant to Build a New Food Pantry
Millbrook has been awarded a $500,000 state grant to build a food pantry that will be home to the West Elmore Outreach Ministry Extension.
WELCOME is an agency of the Montgomery Area Food Bank that provides weekly food distribution and counseling to the needy of west Elmore County.
The project cost is estimated at over $800,000 and includes a $300,000 match from the City of Millbrook, WELCOME and other generous contributors.
The city will also donate property for the pantry on Grandview Road next to the Millbrook Senior Center, currently under construction. Once the new facility is built, WELCOME will move from its current location on Main Street.
“This is a tremendous boost to WELCOME’s ability to not only better respond to our area’s needy, but an opportunity to enhance and elevate their mission and great work. We are looking forward to getting started,” Millbrook Mayor Al Kelley said.
“Over the years, Elmore County’s population has grown substantially, so it’s no surprise that the number of people in need has risen as well, particularly during the pandemic,” WELCOME President Phil Harris said. “We have been blessed to have been able to operate in our current facility for almost three decades, but it is no longer adequate for our needs. We deeply appreciate the way that Millbrook stepped in to help, not only their citizens, but those throughout west Elmore County.”
The project was funded utilizing CDBG-CV grant program funds, administered by the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA), that focus on a community’s pandemic-related needs. The Central Alabama Regional Planning and Development Commission will manage the grant.
