Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee has broken ground on a new 23-acre campus that will more than double its capacity to rescue and distribute food across Middle and West Tennessee. More Local Living News
The new 200,000-square-foot campus is being built as Second Harvest serves a 46-county region where nearly 500,000 people lack reliable access to food, including 1 in 7 adults and 1 in 5 children, at 1301 Donelson Pike, Nashville.
“Today’s groundbreaking is about far more than a building,” said Nancy Keil, president and CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle and West Tennessee. “It represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reimagine how we serve our neighbors.”
The campus will bring food distribution, volunteer operations, neighbor services, culinary training, community programs, and sustainable agriculture together in one location.
A larger warehouse will give Second Harvest more room for dry goods, refrigerated and frozen foods, and additional loading docks, allowing the organization to expand food rescue and distribution while reducing the need to move food between multiple locations.
The new Frist Foundation Neighbor Care Center will include Second Harvest’s first on-site Neighbor Market, a nearly 2,000-square-foot pantry where families can select food based on dietary needs and preferences. The center will also connect visitors with more than 20 nonprofit partners offering services including housing assistance, healthcare, benefits enrollment, legal help, financial literacy and workforce preparation.
Volunteer space will also grow significantly. The HCA Healthcare Foundation Volunteer Engagement Center will include more than 15,000 square feet for orientation, training and food sorting. Second Harvest expects volunteer hours to grow from approximately 84,500 last year to more than 125,000 annually.
The campus will also feature a 5,700-square-foot Culinary Center designed to prepare meals while offering culinary training and nutrition education. The kitchen will also support catering and disaster response efforts.
Other features include the Starbucks Community Center for meetings and community programs, the Bill & Crissy Haslam Foundation Welcome Center and a community garden with hydroponic growing containers for year-round produce.
Nashville-based HASTINGS designed the campus.
Second Harvest said several organizations and foundations made the project possible, including the Dettwiller Foundation, The Frist Foundation, Starbucks, Amazon, the Bill & Crissy Haslam Foundation, the Carolyn Smith Foundation, the HCA Healthcare Foundation, and the Mike and Teresa Nacarato Foundation.
Once complete, the campus is expected to significantly expand Second Harvest’s ability to serve families throughout its 46-county service area.
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