What the planned demolition of Mizzou North means for the CoMo Cooks program – Columbia Daily Tribune

The University of Missouri last week announcedplans to demolish itsMizzou North facility on the Business Loop.

While the university museum collections housed and displayed there will move on campus to Ellis Library, the demolition will also impact anon-university program that operates out of the basement of Mizzou North.

This is the CoMo Cooks shared kitchen,a partnership ofThe Loop Community Improvement District, Regional Economic Development Inc. and the Missouri Women's Business Center.

Here's a look at whatthe planned demolition of Mizzou North later this year or in early 2023means for the shared kitchen program:

Previously:Cooking, baking, sharing COMO Cooks kitchen rental space opens on The Loop

"We knew when we went into this kitchen that we had a clock on it," Loop Executive Director Carrie Gartner said.

This maker space, much like the MACCLab in the Parkade Center, is a business incubator program on The Loop as part of the Cre8CoMo Initiative.

The CoMO Cooks programreceived grants for small-scale manufacturing from Smart Growth America,the federal Economic Development AdministrationandRecast City. The grants also helped in the planning of surveying community needs, Gartner said.

These grants meanta commercial kitchen space was needed almost immediately, she added.

Mizzou North fulfilled that need.

"Our idea was, we have an empty kitchen, let's open it in a hurry and we would not have to build a kitchen," Gartner said.

By having the kitchens at Mizzou North available right away, CoMo Cooks could build up a client base in preparation of securing a different, permanentlocation and moving to the new facility, also on The Loop.

Grants from Etsy and MasterCard Center for Inclusive Growth allowed for branding, promotion and building a related website for the kitchen space and Cre8CoMo.

The CoMo Cooks kitchen will move its facilities from Mizzou North into one of the strips of businesses next to Carlito's Cabo and across the street from Bob McCosh Chevrolet.

The new location will be about 1,000 to 1,200 feet from the Mizzou North property.

"It actually is a better space. It has a storefront so we can do events or pop-up retail," Gartner said.

It also allows for easier pick-up opportunities due to its accessibility compared to the Mizzou North basement, she added.

The new facility is 3,500 square feet. Offices will move into the space, along with building out the shared kitchens.

The program will use a temporary kitchen location as the build-out happens, so clients can continue their work.

Based on supply chain issues and COVID-19 spikes, Gartner expects that it will be at least afew months before the kitchens are in operation at the new facility. Office space will be ready and in use within the next month or so, she added.

The CoMo Cooks program has put in a request to the City of Columbia for American Rescue Plan funds to help with the build-out of the new kitchen facility.

"There is a section of (Rescue Plan funds) dedicated to workforce development, and our kitchen applied," Gartner said, noting Job Point and the MACCLab Maker Space also are applicants.

Gartner is excited for the move because of the ability to have a storefront and pop-up events in the future.

"(Pop-ups) are really key. We can provide a low-cost option for businesses," she said. "Retail pop-ups really help launch a business nicely."

The storefront does not mean pop-up events will focus solely on food-related businesses, Gartner said. The grants received allowed for the creation of an online maker directory, which features just about every type of creative business.

"We do maker markets twice per year, and during the height of the pandemic we were doing online auctions for locally made products," Gartner said, adding the pop-ups will provide locally made products to the community.

The CoMo Cooks kitchen has 14 clients using the space, with five more conducting preparations to eventually start using the kitchens.

REDI and Missouri Women's Business Center providebusiness coaching and make sure clients have all the necessary documentation in place touse the kitchens.

Gartner expects once CoMo Cooks moves to its temporary and eventually permanent location, they will be able to bring in multiple clients at the same time to use the space.

CoMo Cooks is also working on partnerships with The Root Cellar and the Greenbelt Land Trust of Mid-Missouri.

"We are working to bring in farmers from the region to do small-batch production as well," Gartner said.

Farmers who want to make a value-added product to what they already producecould connect with CoMo Cooks for product development. A dairy farmer could start making cheese, or other items could be made by farmers who grow more than just typical row crops of corn and soybeans.

"Locally made food is so important with COVID interrupting the supply chain," Gartner said. "Our kitchen will be the place where farmers can jumpstart a business with value-added products."

The partnerships could also help people who already use the kitchen to source local ingredients from farmers.

"When you are starting a business, all of those connections can help you think differently and help a business grow or expand more quickly," Gartner said.

The university is keeping the Mizzou North property even after the building is demolished, and Gartner hopes to work with the university on any plans it has forthe space.

Decisions are not yet made on the property's future use, MU spokesperson Christian Basi said last week.

"It is quite an opportunity to have that much space in the middle of town," Gartner said about the property's potential.

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What the planned demolition of Mizzou North means for the CoMo Cooks program - Columbia Daily Tribune