Pictured (Left to Right): Harrison Gibson, Leslie Eades, Greg Nelson, Bonnie Wilson, Brian Wronko, Jeff Williams, and Julie Williams.

City of Arlington Partnership

We are partnering with the City of Arlington to bring our pay-what-you-can community restaurant concept to the heart of Downtown Arlington.

Addressing food insecurity is a top priority for Arlington residents.  According to the 2020-2024 HUD Consolidated Plan for the City of Arlington, low and moderate-income individuals and households typically do not have regular access to healthy food because they lack adequate transportation and affordable healthy food choices.

On August 2, 2022, the Arlington City Council approved a 10-year lease agreement, with two five-year options to renew, with Taste Project for the restaurant location. We plan to renovate the building, formerly used by the Water Utilities Department and the Arlington Public Library, into a 100-plus seat full-service restaurant that includes a production kitchen, culinary classroom and headquarter office. The partnership will also add one of Yelp’s Top 100 Best Places to Eat in the US to Arlington’s growing list of dining options in Downtown.

“We are excited to partner with Taste Project to ensure good food for everyone,” said Mayor Jim Ross.  “The organization’s unique approach to helping those in need, while building community, makes it a great fit for the City of Arlington.”

The future Arlington restaurant at 200 North Cooper is located within walking distance of UTA, Texas Health Arlington Memorial Hospital, and numerous Downtown homes and businesses. The location is also easily accessible through Arlington’s affordable citywide on-demand public transportation service, Via Rideshare.

In addition, Taste Project’s culinary job training program provides paid work experience for low-income adults and adults with barriers to employment.  According to the Department of Labor, entry level foodservice positions, typically in fast food, start between minimum wage and $11 per hour.  But adults with certified training can obtain living wage positions in full-service and fine dining restaurants, and production kitchens—which is an expanding marketplace and a growing need for Arlington businesses.

200 N. Cooper Street

On August 2, 2022, the Arlington City Council approved a 10-year lease agreement, with two five-year options to renew, with Taste Project for the restaurant location. We plan to renovate the 13,00 square foot building, formerly used by the Water Utilities Department and the Arlington Public Library, into a 100-plus seat full-service restaurant that includes a production kitchen, culinary classroom and headquarter office.

The future Arlington restaurant, which will bring affordable healthy food choices where they are needed most, is located within walking distance of UTA, Texas Health Arlington Memorial Hospital, and numerous Downtown homes and businesses. The location is also easily accessible through Arlington’s affordable citywide on-demand public transportation service, Via Rideshare.

We enlisted Coeval Studio based in Dallas to design and layout the building renovations. Lead designers Miguel Vicens and Joh Paul Valverde completed the design work for Taste Project’s Fort Worth location and the duo will look to create the same warm and inviting atmosphere in Arlington.

Arlington Location Programming

We are partnering with the City of Arlington to replicate our Taste Community Restaurant program in Fort Worth at 200 N. Cooper Street in Arlington.  Our programs in Arlington will include pay-what-you-can meal service, culinary job training, and farm and garden activities.

“I have always known God’s plans for Taste Project are bigger than Fort Worth,” said Jeff Williams, founder and executive director of Taste Project.  “We could not have asked for a more perfect partner than the City of Arlington to feed, educate, and serve even more people in our community.”

Pay-What-You-Can Meal Service

Like in Fort Worth, the future Arlington restaurant will have no listed menu prices for its healthy, high-quality meals, which are made from local seasonal ingredients. Instead, diners can do one of the following:

1. Pay what you can afford;
2. Pay what you would typically pay; or
3. Pay what you would typically pay, plus a little extra to help a neighbor in need.

Regulars who dine at the Taste Community Restaurant in Fort Worth say they appreciate the nonprofit’s inviting atmosphere and healthy, affordable dishes.

“Eating at Taste Community Restaurant is one of the highlights of my week,” said Monette, a regular guest at Taste Community Restaurant in Fort Worth.  “I never have to worry if my budget is short that week. I am very appreciative and grateful for the service and the menu provided by the wonderful staff.”

Eric, also a regular at the Fort Worth location, agreed. “I’ve been unemployed since the pandemic started, but I’m able to eat here and have great service without feeling guilty.”

Culinary Training Programs

Our new Arlington location will allow us to expand our Culinary Training Programs now offered in Fort Worth. In partnership with Workforce Solutions for Tarrant County, we will provide an accelerated Pre-Apprenticeship, Fundamentals Cook Apprenticeship, and Sous Chef Apprenticeship programs.

Taste Project’s Culinary Job Training Programs are designed for low-income adults and adults with barriers to employment.  We provide the critical training our Apprentices need to get a living wage, highly-skilled position within the foodservice industry segment that is expanding.  We focus on hands-on work experience in real-world environments located within the communities we serve; which is why our apprentices are in-demand.

Our unique programs concludes with our Showcase Dinner; a final exam where apprentices develop, plan, prepare, and present their menu to local employers looking to hire! Our Fort Worth employers include Dickies Arena, Fixture Kitchen and Social Lounge, Marriott Downtown, Sage Dining Services, Stonehouse Fine Dining, Texas Health Resources, the Worthington Hotel (Toro Toro Latin Steakhouse), and many others.  All of our Apprentices receive multiple job offers on-the-spot.

Taste Community Garden

Taste Community Garden provides fresh, healthy food to guests at Taste Community Restaurant, while also serving as a hub where diners and volunteers can learn about gardens, food sourcing, gardening techniques, and promote use of these skills at home.

Here our community can develop, maintain, and share knowledge within a community garden tied to a restaurant. Additionally, this work will transform the surrounding landscape into an aesthetically pleasing patio and garden, promoting green space and healthy development within the Downtown Arlington.

This is the formal request for demolition & construction bids for Taste Community Restaurant Arlington located at 200 N Cooper Street; Arlington, Texas 76011.  All bids should be detailed to understand the total hours, materials, and costs associated with each mechanical craft.  This detail will help Taste Project to ensure the applicant’s  understanding of the requested work and that it meets the proposed objectives.  Please submit all bids via email to darrell.fagala@tasteproject.org or to the address listed below:

Taste Project
Attn: Darrell Fagala
1200 South Main
Fort Worth, Texas 76104

Deadline
All proposals must be submitted by Friday, February 10th, 2023 at 7:00pm (CST).

Construction Set
Formal engineering drawings have been compiled by Coeval Studios.  These can be accessed on their dropbox here.

Scope of Work
The objective of this construction activity is to renovate and convert the Arlington Texas 200 N Cooper St building into a functioning restaurant that will service the surrounding community.

Attached are the schedules of work included with this package; Lighting, Plumbing, Door & Hardware, and Finishing Schedules.  Purchasing and installation responsibilities are listed in the attached MEP package and associated schedules.

Change Management Process
The “Pay What You Can” restaurant is designed to help feed, educate, and serve Tarrant County’s food insecure population, a total of 18.1 percent of Tarrant County’s overall community.  Being a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, extreme care must be taken while developing both a Demolition and Reconstruction cost proposals. Funding for the project is grant based. Any substantial discoverable flaw/challenge that puts the costs/schedule at risk should be communicated to the Project Manager at soon as possible.  All changes must be documented with a description of the finding and both cost and schedule impacts.  Approval by the client must be obtained before any construction activity to resolve the finding is started.  Please use attached Management of Change form.

Project Schedule
Project completion and timing is important to the client.  Please include expected start/completion schedule that includes both demolition and reconstruction activities.

Demolition

• The demolition plan is based on the attached drawing that identifies all interior & exterior walls and utilities being removed and/or modified.
• Additional to the demo drawing, is the requirement to;
• Perform all work in compliance with all applicable local, state and national building, and life safety and electrical codes.
• Locate all utilities prior to starting of demolition. Remove any existing utilities not being reused as required.

Construction

• The Food Service Drawing identifies the restaurant equipment layout. Verify Job Site conditions and dimensions before beginning work.  Attached drawings are schematic in nature with the layout based on best available information.
• All exterior openings, rooms, chases, and attic shall be “Rodent Proof”. All wall penetrations shall be sealed airtight and “Rodent Proof”.  This shall include all wall openings for required utilities; i.e. refrigeration, electrical, plumbing, HVAC, etc.
• Additional detail requirements have been documented in the MEP drawing package. Please review so that you have a complete understanding of the scope of the project.

Additional Requirements

• Only proposals from licensed, bonded and insured organizations will be considered.
• Proposals with demonstrated knowledge and experience constructing and remodeling foodservice environments is essential.
• Funding for construction of Taste Project Arlington should benefit the community Taste Project seeks to serve.  Priority is given to proposals from organizations whose ownership and employees live in Arlington and the surrounding area.

Taste Project Arlington reserves the right to consider modifications to proposals prior to awarding the contract.

Questions
Questions can be directed to Darrell Fagala at 281-389-7996 or via email at darrell.fagala@tasteproject.org.