Willow Roots, one of Pine Plains’ two food pantries, has been told it must leave the 500-square-foot South Main Street space where it has operated for four years.
The nonprofit, which serves roughly 50 local families from 7730 South Main St., received the notice last week, according to co-founder Nelson Zayas.
“Last week we received a letter saying we had to move out,” said Zayas, who co-founded Willow Roots with his wife, Lisa. Zayas said the pantry had a verbal lease agreement with Kyle Lougheed Sr., owner of Ginocchio Electric, that also operates out of the building. “We’ve been [tenants] for four years, and paid the same rent from day one,” Zayas said. “This was completely unexpected.”
A second letter confirmed the move-out date of July 10. It cited plans to repurpose the property, leaving the nonprofit a 60-day window to vacate. Under New York State guidelines, landlords can generally end month-to-month commercial tenancies without stating a reason, provided a 30-day written notice to leave is given.
When reached by phone, Kyle Lougheed Jr. — who signed the letter — declined to comment.
Willow Roots has fed Pine Plains Central School District residents since 2019. The Zayases initially distributed food from the front porch of their home on North Main Street before moving to the current location in March 2021. Food distributions are held on the first and third Saturdays of each month.
Zayas said the pantry’s final distribution will likely be Saturday, June 6; a next-door graduation event has precluded operations June 20.
“If we don’t have a home by then, we may have to consider liquidating our equipment and giving our food to local [pantries],” he said. “It may be the end of Willow Roots.”
Lisa Zayas described a heart-wrenching scene at the twice-monthly food distribution on Saturday, May 16, as attendees learned that Willow Roots would need to find a new location.
“People were crying in the line,” she said.
Among those waiting was Milan resident Katherine Robles, who has received services from Willow Roots for seven years. She wept when she heard the announcement.
“There are very few things you can depend on in this world, but Willow Roots was one of them,” Robles said. “I don’t know what I’m going to do.”
Brittany Filbert, a Willow Roots beneficiary of six years who is unhoused, now volunteers by delivering food to three Stanfordville families.
“When I let one of the [recipients] know that his next delivery may be the last one, he was really upset,” she said. “He counts on [us].”
Lisa Michetti, a Northern Dutchess Hospital social worker who has volunteered with Willow Roots for six years, said many people who need food assistance are on fixed incomes or work full time in low-paying jobs.
“Everything is so expensive, and there is so much need,” she said. “This is so sad. There already aren’t as many resources for people in our community to tap into.”
Meeting the demand for food assistance in the Pine Plains area has pushed the pantry to its physical limits. Nine cold-storage units crowd the cramped quarters, six more fill the Zayases’ garage, and an unassembled walk-in freezer sits off-site. Gently used clothing offered at Willow Roots distributions is packed to capacity in a shed behind the building.
“Right now, we’re tight,” Nelson Zayas said. “I’d like to have 1,000-square-feet, but beggars can’t be choosers.”
While Zayas wants the security of a permanent, owned property, a year of tracking Pine Plains inventory has left him willing to continue renting.
“We need something — anything,” Zayas said. “Right now we have nothing.”
Editor’s note: Nelson Zayas provides bookkeeping and tax services for Pine Plains Journalism Project Inc., the nonprofit organization that owns the Herald. The author of this article volunteers at Willow Roots.
So sad to hear this. Look at all the vacant buildings on Rt 82, South Main, and Church Street in Pine Plains! We need incentives for landlords to turn these empty properties into something beneficial for our community.