Knappa food pantry saved
There is good news for friends of the Knappa food pantry. In November, The Astorian reported that the pantry’s landlord, Lumen Technologies, was considering evicting the pantry. But now, after lobbying from Clatsop County Commissioner Courtney Bangs and County Manager Don Bohn, Lumen seems to have decided to let the food pantry remain at its current location.
“At this moment, they don’t need the building back (and) they don’t foresee needing the building back,” said Karel Goodman, a volunteer with the pantry. According to Goodman, the pantry will be able to remain in the building rent-free, but will have to pay for other expenses such as insurance. The pantry will not receive the official contract with Lumen until the end of January, 2026.
Bangs said after talking with volunteers from the food pantry, she reached out to Lumen in hopes of explaining to someone there the importance of the food bank, and asked Bohn to do the same.
a“I think they came to the realization of how very important it was to the sustainability of the Knappa, Svensen and Brownsmead communities,” said Bangs. “All it took was a couple phone calls and to talk to the right people and them recognizing, ‘Oh, this is very important, and we could do this wonderful deed for this community.’”
Goodman said the community needs the help now, more than ever. She said in the past month, the number of people using the pantry has about doubled.