A ground-breaking ceremony was held recently for a future space in the Barelas neighborhood that will encourage the development of local chefs and food businesses.
Barelas Central Kitchen will be an 11,000-square foot facility on the corner of 4th and Bell in Albuquerque and serve as the home of the Street Food Institute (SFI), which is a commissary kitchen and training facility. According to KOB4 News, the building will feature a commercial kitchen, culinary classroom and community event space.
“We’re an entrepreneurial training program, we’re a nonprofit and we work with individuals who want to start their own small food business,” Tina Garcia-Shams, executive director of SFI, told KOB4 News. “We’re in a really small space right now; we can serve about five entrepreneurs. But this is going to allow us to really grow -- 20 to 25 businesses, so we’re really excited about that.”
SFI is teaming up with Homewise, a local nonprofit developer to assist entrepreneurs in the food industry. Johanna Gilligan, the senior director of Community Development at Homewise, said the program will also benefit local restaurants and eateries around the Barelas neighborhood.
“The economy is completely scrambled right now,” Gilligan told KOB4 News. “The New Mexico Restaurant Association just came out with a study that says since 2019 we’ve lost 18% of food businesses statewide. That’s 1,100 food businesses. If we don’t want all of that to get gobbled up by McDonald’s or fast food restaurants, we need to help entrepreneurs get started. I think there’s tons of interest and tons of pent-up capacity and demand that we’re excited to serve.”
Construction on the Barelas Central Kitchen should be completed in about 12 months, and the project is expected to create more than 50 jobs.
