BEDFORD-STUYVESANT — A Brooklyn CSA is trading its tiny shared space for a 1,100-square-foot storefront in a brand new Bed-Stuy building.
Nextdoorganics, a community-supported agriculture program that lets members buy organic locally-sourced food, will next month open its own brick-and-mortar shop inside the newly-built 360 Throop Ave.
Members will be able to pick up their grocery orders, buy tea or coffee and enjoy special events like potlucks and cooking workshops.
"It's the first of its kind that I can see in any direction, so we're hoping it will be a magnetic force," said Nextdoorganics CEO Josh Cook, 27.
"We're hoping this will be something unique, interesting and community oriented."
The new storefront will replace the group's former preparation space in the back of Bed-Stuy cafe Bread Love. Members can pick up their food six days a week, rather than meeting up at one of the group's 13 pick-up locations across the city.
Would-be members can also take home groceries after joining the CSA on site, Cook said.
"We always want everyone who walks in to get a package on the spot," Cook said.
Members can pick up orders Monday through Saturday, with Sunday reserved for special events like potlucks, cooking workshops and regular discussions on food and agriculture.
The shop will also offer up Red Hook’s Brewklyn Grind coffee alongside custom herbal tea blends. All of the drinks will be based on a "gift economy" model, in which each person's drink is paid for by a previous customer.
Since starting in June of 2011, the CSA has grown to more than 600 members, who place more than 400 orders a week, according to Cook.
The group, started by Cook and partner Kris Schumacher, 37, was born out of Cook's interest in urban farming, and began working with local groups like the Bushwick Farmers Market. Now, the group works with farms in the Hudson Valley, Pennsylvania and New Jersey in addition to their partners in the city.
With next month's expansion, the group hopes it can develop relationships with even more local companies.
"We have an interest in developing unique relationships with people nearby," Cook said. "We hope the storefront helps develop those types of relationships."
Nextdoorganics opens in February, with hours from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Visit the group's website to sign up.
