Paramount Helps Ohio Health Center Address Food Insecurity

Driven by the vision of Cliff Edwards, CEO, and their mission to improve the health of the community beyond the walls of the health center, Center Street Health Center wanted to help address the ongoing issue of food insecurity in Marion, Ohio. They made the commitment to eliminate a downtown Marion food desert.

Over two years ago, Tim Petee, director of regional operations for Paramount Advantage, learned of Cliff’s aspirations to open a grocery store and quickly jumped on the opportunity to help. Center Street Health Center had already purchased property across the street in downtown Marion. Paramount Advantage helped to identify this area as a food desert, which allowed Center Street Health Center to secure funding for establishing their food market. In addition, Paramount Advantage connected Center Street Health Center with ProMedica’s Market on the Green.

ProMedica, Paramount’s parent organization, opened their Market on the Green grocery store in UpTown Toledo in 2015. After years of work addressing food insecurity in the community and patient-care settings, ProMedica identified a need to fill a void in the UpTown Toledo neighborhood, a disadvantaged community with poor health outcomes which lacked access to a grocery store for years.

During planning of the Marion grocery store, Center Street Community Health Center leadership and board members visited ProMedica’s Market on the Green to get ideas for their store. The visit led to a consulting engagement with ProMedica to provide support for the opening of Center Street’s store. Over the course of 12 months, ProMedica provided advisory support on the project which included business plan and operating model development, store layout, vendor selection, merchandising, and staff training.

Through this effort, Paramount Advantage was honored to cover all Market on the Green consultative expenses incurred by Center Street Community Health Center.

Center Street Corner Market opened to serve the Marion community on November 6, 2020 offering fresh produce, meat, dairy, grocery and a variety of basic household items.

Read the complete story by visiting ProMedica’s newsroom.