The planning and zoning commission is considering granting a permit to the Salvation Army to open a soup kitchen at its building on Lester Street.
Burkholder will appear before the planning and zoning commission Monday night to seek a permit to run a soup kitchen out of the Salvation Army kitchen one day a week. She has been working for the past four months to get the site inspected and file the necessary paperwork required to get the permit.
Burkholder said the plan to start a soup kitchen has been in the works for several years. The Salvation Army sought grants and donations to pay for the kitchen.
“I spoke recently with the Connecticut Food bank,” Burkholder said. “They told me there is no such program available for the Valley. So the need is definitely there.”
The Salvation Army currently runs a food pantry two days a week, handing out groceries and food for about 185 people each month. Other facilities in the Valley also run food pantries. But the closest hot meal is handed out in Milford each day. (The Spooner House homeless shelter in Shelton gives three meals a day to its residents, but does not have a soup kitchen for the general public.)
Because there isn’t another soup kitchen in the area, local social services representatives said it’s hard to know exactly what the need is in the Valley.
“We don’t have a good gauge on it,” said Susan Agamy, the executive director of the Spooner House. “Rarely do we get somebody who is knocking on the door just for a meal. But we do have people looking for food through the food bank. I’m sure (the soup kitchen) would be something that would be utilized.”
Rich Knoll, who organizes the Meals on Wheels program for TEAM Inc., said census data for the area shows there are several people with low incomes.
“We are aware of some families that are very low income. They are struggling to make ends meet,” Knoll said. “And of course we’re aware of a large number of families that are losing income because of the current economic downturn.”
He said while soup kitchens are typically popular in bigger cities among single, homeless people, Knoll believes a soup kitchen in the Valley may attract more families in need of help.
Burkholder said once they receive approval to run the soup kitchen, she hopes to attract volunteers and eventually expand the number of days they serve meals. Right now, she’s thinking about hosting a meal on a Saturday or Sunday.
“We’re waiting to decide. Some people said it could take six months to get through planning and zoning,” Burkholder said. “It’s new to the area. The city hasn’t dealt with this yet. I’m not sure what they will say Monday.”
