International District native opens grocery store to help people in food desert

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Ever since Walmart, Big Lots, Walgreens and a dollar store all closed in an area of the International District, residents have been living in a food desert.

Since then, residents have had issues with access to food. It’s something that Hussein “Jay” Nimer recognized.

“I grew up around this area. I have a lot of friends and family who kind of still live here so, and it’s, I think it’s an older spot in Albuquerque, but it still has life in it. So it’s just because we moved on to different areas doesn’t mean that we should leave the older areas kind of left alone,” Nimer said.

Nimer owns a few business in the metro and decided to try out a new venture. About two weeks ago, he opened 505 Supermarket in his childhood neighborhood.

“I feel like in every community, there always takes at least one person to just break that window or go in the door and open for the neighborhood. And I feel like, if I didn’t do it, I mean, people, it’s already been about six, eight months that people have been driving very far to go to other places. And if you don’t take that foot in and start, and you don’t try it, then you’ll never know if it’ll work or not,” he said. “It’s always going to be a risk. But life is about risks, so if we can’t take them, we can’t expect to get any benefits.”

The 505 Supermarket still needs a few finishing touches, like refrigerators to hold more food like milk and eggs. But, it’s right down the road from area schools, like Highland High School and Whittier Elementary School, and is aimed at being a family-friendly store for the community.

And people in the community are already taking notice.

“We need to keep the community here in our own barrio,” Jaime Campos said.

Campos is a proud Highland High School graduate who has lived in the International District his whole life. But, over the years, he’s seen food sources dry up, forcing neighbors to travel farther away to get food.

“You know, it’s people who don’t have transportation and rely on the bus. I feel bad because you got to carry these bags, and some of these bags are getting heavy,” Campos said.

The success of the store depends on him and people in nearby neighborhoods.

“Any kind of support that we can have and we can give him business-wise, whether it be in our flyers, meetings, at any kind of event that we’re hosting, we would love to offer it,” said Natalie Vargas, the vice chair of the South San Pedro Neighborhood Association.

Anything to fill the void of the places that closed.

“It’s kind of hard because, I mean, we want something, or we need, like, any kind of medication or anything. Our Walgreens is closed now. Walmart’s closed. Family Dollar’s closed. It’s been a hard hit here in Central and San Mateo. I mean, it’s not fair for the people that live here,” said Humberto Mendoza, who works in the area.

The Walmart building, in particular, is still vacant, but it recently went under contract. It’s unclear what could be coming, though.

“A lot of people feel upset. They feel like we’re not being heard. We feel like we’ve been abandoned at some point, and we just need more resources in our area,” Vargas said.

With his 505 Supermarket open, Nimer hopes the store will also change perceptions of the neighborhood – and he says he’s willing to face future challenges.

“It’s always going to be a risk. But life is about risks, so if we can’t take them, we can’t expect to get any benefits,” he said.

The 505 Supermarket is on San Mateo between Trumbull and Southern. They accept SNAP, EBT and will eventually offer locally-grown produce as well.