Community Update #3: April Meeting, FCI Live & Next Steps
Dear Friends and Supporters,
Welcome to everyone who has recently joined the conversation — there
are incredible ideas emerging and we are working on ways to start
connecting all of it together. This community's response has been
truly inspiring.
Next Community Meeting — Saturday, April 4th, Noon–3 PM
Bloomingdale Municipal Center
Mark your calendars and plan to bring your knowledge, your questions,
and your ideas. We look forward to seeing you there.
Introducing Nick Dalton — Prospective Cooperative Director
We are excited to introduce Nick Dalton, who is joining our team as
Prospective Director of the Bloomingdale Food Access Cooperative — and
he will be at the April 4th meeting to connect with the community in
person.
Nick brings over 20 years of experience leading nonprofit institutions
and building community-driven programs across the globe. His background spans strategic planning, grant management, cross-sector partnerships, and developing sustainable hubs in both urban and rural
communities. He holds an MFA from Goddard College with a concentration in the creation of cultural centers in rural communities — which makes him a natural fit for what we are building here in Bloomingdale. He also grew up in Lawton and South Haven, before graduating from WMU. So, he is locally grown.
Nick has worked with organizations ranging from Hope College to the National Gandhi Ashram to helping found the Rotary Club of Fennville/Pullman/Lakeshore during COVID. And, he has a proven track record of growing
community access, building collaborative networks, and developing institutions that last. We are thrilled to have him helping shape the future of this cooperative.”
Food Co-op Initiative — FCI Live (Free & Online)
We have been working with the Food Co-op Initiative in developing our cooperative model, and they are hosting a free online event starting March 23rd — FCI Live.
This is a fantastic introduction to what a food
co-op is, how it works, and why it matters for communities like ours.
I will personally be attending as many sessions as possible. Everyone
is welcome:
https://fci.coop/
A Note on the Wagoner's Building
We want to make sure everyone has accurate information: BDA has made a
formal proposal to the Bloomingdale Area Improvement Club for the
Wagoner's building. That proposal is still pending — BAIC will be
holding their April meeting to consider our proposal along with a few
other offers they have received for the space. We look forward to that
conversation and will keep you informed as things develop.
The Momentum Is Real — Here's How to Keep It Going
The response in community signups has been overwhelming and we are
genuinely excited. Here are your next steps:
1. Start Learning About Food Co-ops
A few great places to begin:
• Food Co-op Initiative: https://fci.coop/
• Grow Benzie: https://www.growbenzie.org/
• Kalamazoo Valley Food Hub: https://valleyhub.kvcc.edu/
• People's Food Co-op, Kalamazoo: https://www.pfckalamazoo.coop/
2. Start Sharing
Spread the word. Let's build the community and utilize everyone's
talents to make this a reality. The more people who know, the stronger
we are. bda-mi.org/food-access-project
3. Come to the April 4th Meeting
Saturday, April 4th, Noon–3 PM at the Bloomingdale Municipal Center.
Nick Dalton will be there, along with the full BDA team. Bring your
knowledge, your questions, and your voice. This is where the real work
happens — together.
Thank you for believing in Bloomingdale. More updates coming soon.
In community,
Kurtis Dickerson
Executive Director, Bloomingdale Development Association
info@bda-mi.org | (269) 655-4335
Community Update #2: Building Momentum on the Food Access Project
Building Something Real in Bloomingdale
It's been a quiet few weeks in Bloomingdale — the kind of quiet that looks like nothing is happening from the outside. But from where we're standing, it doesn't feel quiet at all.
Since our first community meeting in January, the Bloomingdale Development Association has been doing what matters most right now: building the foundation. Not the exciting part. Not the ribbon-cutting part. The foundation.
The boring stuff that makes everything else possible.
If you're just joining us: Wagoner's — Bloomingdale's only grocery store — closed on December 21st, 2025. That left our village of 460+ people without a place to buy food. No other grocery store is coming to fill the gap. So the community is building its own: a cooperative grocery store, owned by its members, governed by the people who shop there. The Bloomingdale Development Association is leading the effort — pursuing federal grants, negotiating for a building, forming the cooperative corporation, and organizing the community support that makes it all possible. That's the project. Here's where it stands.
You can meet the people leading this effort on our updated Board page at bda-mi.org/about.
Our board has formally adopted financial compliance policies, conflict of interest procedures, and governance structures that meet federal grant requirements. This is the paperwork that tells USDA Rural Development: "This organization is serious. This project is real. Fund it with confidence." It's not glamorous. But it's the difference between a grant application that gets funded and one that gets filed.
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The Money
We're pursuing a $465,000 USDA Rural Business Development Grant — the primary funding source for acquiring and renovating the building that will become our community's food access hub. Our application has been rated "strong" by the consultant who reviewed it. We're preparing for an informational review with USDA Rural Development before the formal submission window opens.
At the same time, we're filing an equipment grant with the Michigan Department of Agriculture for the shelving, kitchen equipment, and processing space. And we've started conversations with the Michigan Good Food Fund — a community development lender specifically designed for food enterprises like ours.
These aren't long shots. These are the right conversations with the right people at the right time.
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The Building
We've submitted an offer to the Bloomingdale Area Improvement Club — the nonprofit that owns the former Wagoner's building. Our proposal: a land contract. We take over the building, cover the taxes and insurance, make monthly payments, and secure the property for the community.
We're not the only ones interested. But we believe we're the right ones.
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The Cooperative
Here's what we're most excited about: the grocery store won't be owned by a single person or even by BDA. It will be owned by you. A standalone cooperative corporation — community-owned, member-governed, built to last. With guidance from MSU's Cooperative Development Program and the Food Co-Op Initiative, we're forming the cooperative structure that will own and operate the store.
That means founding members will have a voice in how the store runs, what it carries, and how it grows. It means the profits stay local. This isn't just a store — it's a community asset.
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The Community
We've received letters of support from the Village Council, the Township Council, and the Van Buren County District Library. Three levels of institutional backing. Each letter says the same thing: Bloomingdale needs this, and the community supports it.
Now we need your voice too.
Sign the Community Pledge of Support. It takes 30 seconds. Every signature strengthens our applications and tells funders: this community wants this project.
If you know a farmer or food producer who might want to sell through the co-op, send them a link to our food access page (bda-mi.org/food-access-project). Word of mouth is how this grows.
We're building toward a summer 2026 opening. The foundation is laid. Now we build.
3 Ways to Help Right Now
1. Share the Community Pledge
Link: https://forms.gle/MHTmW3RxNXKMGsE98
Text it to everyone you know. Post on social media. Community groups. The more signatures, the stronger we look.
Sample text: "I'm supporting the Bloomingdale Food Access Project — bringing a community-owned grocery store to Bloomingdale after our store closed. Can you sign the pledge? 30 seconds: https://forms.gle/MHTmW3RxNXKMGsE98"
2. Become an Ambassador for the Food Access C0-Op
Become a Community Ambassador — if you want to do more than sign, become an ambassador. Share the pledge with your neighbors, talk about the project at community events, help us build the support that makes this real.
Sign up to be a Community Ambassador → (https://forms.gle/QtT5hcktW19E5o6V8)
3. If you know a farmer or food producer who might want to sell through the co-op, connect them with us. Word of mouth is how this grows.
We're building toward a summer 2026 opening. The foundation is laid. Now we build.
Thank you for being part of this from the beginning.
— Kurtis Dickerson, Executive Director, Bloomingdale Development Association
bda-mi.org | info@bda-mi.org
Need to submit a letter of support for your business? Email info@bda-mi.org and we'll send you the template.