N.Y.C. Groceries

New York City is increasingly becoming unaffordable for working New Yorkers. When the cost of everyday necessities rises faster than paychecks, families feel it most at the checkout counter. In moments like these, City government has a responsibility to step in—especially when the market is not delivering affordability on its own.

N.Y.C. Groceries is a new initiative to bring down the cost of everyday groceries and household staples, strengthen neighborhood food access, and demonstrate a new role for public sector leadership in food affordability. Drawing on proven models—from public power to affordable broadband—N.Y.C. Groceries treats access to affordable food as an essential public service.

How the Program Will Work

The City will establish five N.Y.C. Groceries stores—one in each borough—prioritizing City-owned sites wherever possible. To support this effort, the City has committed $70 million in capital funding for store construction and fit-out.

NYCEDC, on behalf of the City, will:

• Select experienced, third-party grocery operator(s) through a competitive procurement process.
• Set strict requirements for pricing, affordability, labor standards, operations, and reporting.
• Maintain City control and full transparency to ensure public goals are met.

Where the Stores Will Be Located

As of May 2026, the following sites have been selected as N.Y.C. Groceries locations:

Manhattan: La Marqueta

Located in the heart of East Harlem, La Marqueta supports more than 20 small businesses—including restaurants, art vendors, and community programming—and employs approximately 120 people. One of its many spaces will be leveraged to house the N.Y.C. Groceries store, which will serve this diverse neighborhood.

Bronx: The Peninsula

Located in Hunts Point, The Peninsula is the multi-phase redevelopment of the former Spofford Juvenile Detention Facility. The 20,000-square-foot N.Y.C. Groceries store located within The Peninsula is anticipated to open in 2027.

In May 2026, the City opened an online portal that invites private property owners or their authorized representatives to recommend sites for consideration as locations for N.Y.C. Groceries stores in Brooklyn, Queens, and Staten Island. The portal is intended to support early identification and screening of potential sites, and to inform next steps in the development of the initiative at large.

Our Vision

N.Y.C. Groceries reimagines how City government can support working people by delivering meaningful, predictable savings on a core basket of groceries while setting high standards for quality, labor, and customer experience. The program is grounded in a simple idea: Affordable groceries should be reliable, dignified, and accessible to all New Yorkers.

By establishing a network of City-supported grocery stores, N.Y.C. Groceries aims to:

• Provide direct relief at the cash register through lower prices on everyday essentials
• Expand access to high-quality groceries in underserved neighborhoods
• Encourage price stabilization across the broader grocery market

The Road Ahead

NYCEDC is conducting informational meetings regarding a grocery operator opportunity. If you are interested in speaking with NYCEDC, please email [email protected] by Friday, June 26, 2026.

Moving forward, the City will continue engaging experts, advocates, community partners, and everyday New Yorkers as the administration finalizes sites and designs stores. Public input will help shape both store locations and the products on their shelves.