Food

Community invests in proposed West Oakland grocery store

Ahmadi said he had no choice but to fundraise from residents, rather than taking a more traditional path such as a loan from a bank. On paper, the project showed a high risk of failure “both because it’s a start-up and a low-margin business—also because of the perceptions of the challenges of the neighborhood,” said Ahmadi.

Fresh and free produce, no strings attached

Every Tuesday morning, Max Cadji of Phat Beets drops off half a dozen boxes of fresh fruit and produce at Jasper P. Driver Plaza in North Oakland. The food is grown at several local urban farms and gardens and distributed to the community.