Mobile Oasis Market (M.O.M.) Cross-Sectors Proposal | Ghost of a Dream (Adam Eckstrom)
Adam Eckstrom (half of Ghost of a Dream) was one of four artists selected to participate in our 2020 Cross-Sectors residency program focusing on the healthcare, aimed to introduce creative ways of bringing art into the service of human care.
Adam’s Mobile Oasis Market proposal was produced as part of the residency, presented at the Artivate Summit in Fall of 2020, and open to public feedback.
Elsewhere’s bi-annual Cross-Sectors research Residency embeds artists within non-arts industries to build partnerships through project research and proposals, modeling the potential of interdisciplinary collaboration.
Mobile Oasis Market (M.O.M.) Proposal
As Ghost of a Dream, we make all of our work about people’s hopes and dreams, using the ephemera people create trying to attain those aspirations. When we began working together, our pieces were about common goals of love and money. However, recently we’ve started investigating a more critical human hope, a society with justice and equality for all.
After spending time in Greensboro with the people at Elsewhere Museum, CONE health, Union Square, city council, and the Beloved Community Center, among others – I realized the most positive impact would come through supporting community rather than proposing a static sculpture that beautifies one particular space of a hospital. Ghost of a Dream proposes a project that can improve people’s general health to lower their need for trips to the doctor’s office or Emergency Room. I ask the healthcare system to bring preventative, healthy food to deserts of Greensboro, making healthy eating a more equitable option.
I am proposing to take a used city bus and turn it into a mobile grocery store, which we call Mobile Oasis Market or M.O.M. for short. This idea is not unique; it exists in many other cities and many manifestations. But with the onset of COVID-19, most of these options have had to suspend or severely limit their services, bringing food equity back to a screeching halt. I am proposing a shift in the model, which would make this mobile market successful and safe during the COVID reality.
I want to create an outdoor shopping experience where people can buy affordable produce, dairy, and dry goods while the cashier is safely working at a distance inside the bus. Coolers and shelving units are installed on the exterior. Shoppers will start at the rear of the bus, make their way towards the front under an awning that shields them from the elements, then pay through a COVID safe window drawer at the front. The bus will move to locations within Greensboro where grocery stores are sparse, and the options for getting quality food are limited. I hope M.O.M. will serve many people, providing a low-cost alternative for fresh food, that accepts food stamps/WIC, Etcetera.
M.O.M. will also have a doctor’s office/flex space in the rear portion of the bus. This space could be the office for a general practitioner to serve people who cannot make it easily into a Doctor’s office, ensuring regular care for communities in need. In the future, once we can safely go into enclosed spaces together, the flex space could also house community-led cooking classes that use ingredients sold on the bus. I propose to get the ball rolling, design, fabricate, all while making connections, working with community members, and locating best sites to serve. Then I hope to hand this project over to local partners who I’ve been working with to assume full control over the Mobile Oasis Market.
Community Feedback
Polling - 22 votes on a scale of 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent)
Who are potential partners, funders or collaborators for this project?
Comments
“This is a great idea with a lot of potential social impact. I am unclear about how the failed casino art relates to the food bus.”
“Fantastic idea. I wonder if the operating costs of transportation will be supported through sales (while still maintaining accessibility of pricing for the undeserved, poorer communities).”
“Food and including benefits of eating healthy should also be provided.”
“TERRIFIC IDEA! It is attractive and helps remedy the food desert problems.”
“Having lived in Greensboro as a low income person without a car, I can say I have felt the need for something like this and believe in the positive impact it could have.”
“Concerned about sustainability and operating expenses.”
“I love this idea so much!”
“I would be interested what the budget for other orgs were for their program (i.e. St. Louis). How many people can one bus connect with?”
“Love that food is taken into the community to serve areas that are far from food availability. Goes to the people in need.”
“This is a great idea! I think it would be almost immediately beneficial to the community.”
“Would need to consider barriers to staffing of MOM - special drivers license needed, headquarters space with safe food storage, etc.”
“Focused on key issues impacting the most vulnerable citizen in Greensboro. This is where the most basic need is in the city.”
“I think this is such a basic need (food) that has to be addressed as part of health.”
“Food storage and handling permits may become challenging to maintain.”
“An interesting idea that could intersect with existing proposals for Cone Health mobile units (mammography, screenings, etc.)”
“I really like the idea but worry that the business would have to be stood up and carefully lead. It's a bit outside of Cone Health's traditional experience and services. I hope this happens anyway.”
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