On Tuesday, he revealed the first location confirmed, La Marqueta in East Harlem, will have to be torn down and rebuilt. It isn't slated to open until 2029, and it will cost $30 million.
On West 86th Street, volunteers for the West Side Campaign Against Hunger were handing out bags of fresh food. It's a lifeline for thousands of families, many of them from Washington Heights.
"This is very helpful because there's a lot of people who can't find good food," said one pantry client. "So, this helps them a lot to be able to feed their families."
But the group's CEO, Greg Silverman, admits it's not enough.
"We cannot 'pantry' our way out of hunger," Silverman said. "This organization is feeding over 100,000 people. That's not a solution."
Silverman says he supports Mayor Mamdani's plan to sell discounted groceries in five city-run supermarkets. La Marqueta, in East Harlem, would be built on vacant land.
"What we are looking to do is to provide something to New Yorkers where they don't have to hope, but they have a guarantee that their essentials will be cheaper at that supermarket," Mamdani said.
Under the Mamdani plan, the city owns the land or leases space and covers the costs of construction or renovations, and a private contractor manages the daily operations where "everyday staples" will be sold at discounts.
"A set number of products that are affordable-rice, beans and fruit," said Carey King, director of Uptown Grand Central. "It's still to be determined exactly what the basket is, but the things that an average family would need to eat throughout the week."
However, critics have questioned its viability, from potentially chaotic lines to stock shortages and the enormous cost to taxpayers.
Eyewitness News caught up with Anthony Pena, president of the National Supermarket Association.
"You can invest in the independent community that is already there. The infrastructure is there, and we will be able to pass those savings instantly," Pena said. "You know, you take $70 million, and you give it to the independent market, not only will you just change the life of the people within that sector, but the whole industry."
The first supermarket is expected to open late next year. Mamdani says the others, including the East Harlem site, will open before the end of his term in 2029. That is, if the City Council approves not just the concept, but the money.
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