KANSAS CITY, Kan. — The Argentine community, which has been a food desert for years, is celebrating the opening of a new grocery store.
El Mercado Fresco opened at the end of July at Metropolitan Avenue off of 18th Street Expressway. It replaces the Save-A-Lot, which had to close several of its stores in the metro.
The new store mostly caters to the area's Latino residents but has the same amenities as any market.
The Walmart Neighborhood Market is right next door, which opened in 2014.
The Argentine Betterment Corporation helped El Mercado Fresco open. Executive Director Micah King said both grocery stores give the community options where there were none before.
"We felt like for the community, this was the best fit," King said. "We know a lot of our residents don't necessarily have cars and they take the bus. This would be a place they can go get food. "They have food already made, so it kind of fills that fast-food niche we were looking for."
El Mercado Fresco has three stores in the metro.
