Second Harvest Food Bank expanding

Second Harvest Food Bank is expanding, with the renovation of a building for its Wolff Family Child Hunger Solution Center.

The new facility, at 402 N. Perry St., is adjacent to its existing warehouse and offices in the East Central neighborhood of Spokane. It will add 21,000 square feet to the food bank, including a 13,000-square-foot warehouse.

Volunteers at Second Harvest sort, box and pack millions of pounds of fruits and vegetables a year at its existing facility, 1234 E. Front Ave.

The expansion will allow Second Harvest to manage more food supplies and provide more hunger relief through child-focused programs like Bite2Go, according to a statement from the food bank. The new facility will be the permanent home for Bite2Go, which provides weekend meals for students in need during the school year. According to Second Harvest, 22,000 children in Spokane County are at risk of going hungry and unsure where their next meal will come from.

Funding for the expansion comes from numerous sources. The food bank is putting in $350,000, and $550,000 is coming from the federal Community Development Block Grant program, which is administered by the city of Spokane.