Orleans Property To Serve As Regional Food Hub

ORLEANS – A purchase and sale agreement has been signed to convert property on Finlay Road into a regional food distribution warehouse.

Lower Cape Outreach council announced June 24 that it has signed an agreement to purchase the property at 49-51 Finlay Rd., which is currently home to Thompson’s Printing Company.

Council CEO Katie Wibby in a press release called the purchase “a once-in-a-generation opportunity” to effectively address the deepening issue of food insecurity on the Lower and Outer Cape. 

“The Food Hub will help us keep pantry shelves stocked, bring more fresh and healthy food into our communities, and respond quickly when emergencies strike,” she said.

The purchase of the 11,000-square-foot facility marks the final phase of the council’s $3.5 million Hunger and Hope Can’t Wait capital campaign to update its Brewster Cross Road headquarters and increase its existing food storage capacity. The council is seeking to raise an additional $1.7 million to renovate the Finlay Road space into the distribution hub.

The warehouse, which will work in conjunction with the council’s nine food pantries on the Lower and Outer Cape, will allow the council to "accept full-pallet deliveries, purchase in larger quantities at lower per-item cost and take advantage of more free and low-cost food rescue opportunities,” according to the release. The council also says the space is “well suited for dry storage, refrigeration, freezer space, shelving systems and an on-demand generator to protect food supplies during emergencies.”

“Combating food insecurity remains LCOC’s highest priority because access to nutritious food is essential to health, wellness and community resilience,” said Jim Kivlehan, the council’s board president. “This facility will help make the Lower and Outer Cape a stronger, more prepared and more thriving place to live. We are asking everyone who loves this community to join us.”

News of the warehouse acquisition has also been well received by the council’s partnering agencies, including the Greater Boston Food Bank, which helps provide the council’s pantries with food.

“Lower Cape Outreach Council has been a strong partner since 2007,” said Michele Fronk Schuckel, the food bank’s vice president for community health and nutrition. “We strongly support LCOC’s food hub warehouse initiative as a timely investment to expand reliable, equitable access to healthy food across the Lower and Outer Cape.”

Thompson’s Printing will relocate to a new space at 102 S. Orleans Rd. in January, according to the release.

Community members can support the capital campaign by making a charitable gift to Lower Cape Outreach Council, P.O. Box 665, Orleans, MA 02653. For giving opportunities or more information, contact the council’s development office at 774-684-2153 or by emailing donations@lcoutreach.org.