INDIANAPOLIS — The City of Indianapolis has announced the addition of two grocery partners to the Lyft Project. First announced by Mayor Joe Hogsett in his State of the City address, the pilot program will provide subsidized Lyft rides to grocery stores on the far eastside for up to 500 families between 46th St. to 38th St. and Franklin Rd. to German Church Rd. The pilot is the result of a partnership between the City, the Central Indiana Community Foundation, Mt. Carmel Church, and Lyft.
In response to the closing of the Walmart Neighborhood Market at 38th St. and Franklin Rd., the City announced new grocery partners in the pilot program. Participants in the program will now be able to receive subsidized Lyft rides to 4 grocery stores: Tienda Morelos, A & I Variety, Sunnyside Kroger, and Carniceria Guanajuato.
Also in last month’s State of the City, Mayor Hogsett announced plans to introduce to council a fiscal ordinance to fund innovative programs that address issues of food insecurity and limited food access in Indianapolis neighborhoods. In addition to the Lyft Project, these programs include the new Food Compass technology — a multi-platform communication tool developed with artificial intelligence to help residents navigate the complex nutrition assistance landscape and get connected with emergency food resources. In addition, they announced a Neighborhood Food Champions program that will provide training and support to 10 neighborhood food advocates, and the creation of the city’s first mobile grocery store. This fiscal ordinance, Proposal 258, passed unanimously out of the City County-Council Public Safety and Criminal Justice Committee recently.