Whole Foods Markets (NASDAQ: WFM) announced Wednesday it will open a monthly pop-up shop at the Gateway Pavilion on the east campus of St. Elizabeths Hospital.
The shop will sell fruits, vegetables, meat and fish at the pavilion. The goal is to increase access to healthy foods for residents east of the Anacostia River, Mayor Vincent Gray said in connection with his proposal to build a new hospital nearby.
The St. Elizabeths East Gateway Pavilion, completed in October, is a 400-foot-long facility featuring a 16,300-square-foot open air market with space for 40 vendors, 3,100 square feet of enclosed civic space, a 21,000-square-foot vegetated green roof and a raised park, which will be available for concerts, festivals and other large gatherings.
The market will be open from noon to 5 p.m. in the first Saturday of the month, beginning on April 5.
Gray was questioned about the value of only making fruits and vegetables available once a month.
“The current schedule is once-every-never,” Gray said.
