The St. Alphonsus Parish food and clothing pantry serves 700 people a day, but the increasing demand for the pantry's services is exceeding the available space.
GRAND RAPIDS (WZZM) -- The fourth of five finalists in Erhardt Construction's "Building Our Community" contest is the St. Alphonsus Parish food and clothing pantry.
It's located on Carrier Street NE in Grand Rapids' Creston neighborhood.
The 40-year-old pantry serves 700 people a day, but the increasing demand for the pantry's services is exceeding the available space.
Operators want to re-purpose part of the parish's former school to create a LEED-certified food pantry -- meaning it meets environmental and energy-saving standards.
"If you take a look into our current space, we have a lot of issues here," says A.J. Setter, St. Alphonsus' director of its social concerns ministry. "It's very hard for our volunteers to move around, clients can't shop for their own food --- they have to fill out a food list with us. We''d love for them to be able to come in and see all of the great food that we have to offer them."
Erhardt Construction will award a $45,000 construction project to the winner. All five finalists are non-profit groups.
The winner of the Building Our Community contest will be determined by an online vote.
Click here for Monday's entry - Camp Roger
Click here for Tuesday's entry - Crash's Landing
Click here for Wednesday's entry - San Juan Diego Academy