BALDWIN, Fla. – Baldwin residents are concerned that they will be forced to drive farther to get what they need after the town-owned Baldwin Market closes in March.
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Linda Fordham is the assistant store manager of Baldwin Market and she said the produce section is her favorite part of the store.
“We have to chop all the vegetables. Fresh vegetables every day,” Fordham said.
A lot of the shelves aren’t fully stocked because the store is expected to close next month.
“That’s a recent thing,” Fordham said. “We’ve always kept our shelves stocked and full and everything. It’s just a recent thing.”
Fordham said they’re not making the money they need to survive and they don’t have enough support.
“The cost of everything’s going up and we’re not able to get stuff if the people are not going to buy stuff,” Fordham said.
Stanley Wade Williamson has shopped at Baldwin Market for years.
“It makes me mighty sad,” Williamson said.
He added that its closing would mean the town of nearly 1,400 would be missing a key part of them.
“It’s local and convenient and quick and they had a lot of good stuff that was already made. It was kind of like a staple for us,” Williamson said.
The town-owned market opened in 2019 after the IGA supermarket in the town closed in 2018.
News4JAX reported on the grocery store after it opened because there was a national debate on whether it was a good idea for a town to own its grocery store.
If the store did close, the only place else in town for people to shop is the Dollar General, but they don’t have as much produce or meats as Baldwin Market.
The next nearest grocery store is 8.1 miles away in Jacksonville. The other closest store would be in Macclenny, but that’s a drive Williamson wouldn’t want to take for safety reasons.
“Honestly people around here drive pretty safe you know sometimes you get into bigger cities and you know and traffic accidents are very prone,” Williamson said.
Fordham said she would love to see the store stay open so they can continue to serve the town of Baldwin.
The store’s official last day is expected to be March 18.