Construction is underway at our Food Innovation Network’s new commercial kitchen and community hub! Tukwila Village Food Hall will be home to FIN’s Food Business Incubator, which has already helped launch 12 businesses headed by low-income South King County residents, primarily immigrants and refugees.
Food businesses have traditionally been a way for many striving immigrants and low-income families to make a living. However, skyrocketing real estate and rental rates are making it difficult for these entrepreneurs to access commercial kitchen and restaurant spaces in South King County. Tukwila Village Food Hall will provide the space and support to help entrepreneurs launch and scale to successful local businesses. The Food Hall will also provide a community hub—a space where people can gather to learn about and celebrate the community’s rich food traditions.
The facility
The 2,900-square-foot facility will include a commercial kitchen with four cook stations, five food retail stalls (including one stall designated for pop-ups and cooking demos), and a community dining area. The space will accommodate 20 food businesses, including eight that will rent stalls in the public Food Hall. Other businesses will use the kitchen for off-site sales, such as catering and farmers markets.
The Food Hall will be in Tukwila Village, a mixed development project with 400 new affordable and market-rate apartments. Construction began in late 2018, and the Food Hall will be ready for operations next spring.
State and community support
Building out the facility and installing kitchen equipment will cost $850,000. Thanks to our local funding partners and the State of Washington, we’ve already raised more than half of this amount!
Communities of Opportunity and the Port of Seattle have provided support in the pilot testing, pre-construction needs, and program expansion.
The State of Washington has appropriated $400,000 in its capital budget to support the project; the budget request was sponsored by Sen. Bob Hasegawa, and supported by dozens of local businesses, nonprofit organizations, and community leaders.
We continue to seek sponsors, and have launched a capital campaign to help raise the remaining funds. You can help open Tukwila Village Food Hall by contributing online and joining our crowdfunding campaign!
Learn more
- Subscribe to FIN’s email updates to receive news about Tukwila Village Food Hall and FIN programs and events.
- Visit FIN’s website to read more about Tukwila Village Food Hall and the Food Business Incubator, and watch our video featuring Incubator participants: