CreekSide in Social Media

Listen to Time Out with Phillip Silverstone - they discuss one of our popular ice cream brands- Bassett's - and give CreekSide a great shout-out!

Run for the CreekSide Board

It is time for our annual CreekSide Co-op's Board of Directors elections.  This year there will be 9 seats available out of 13.

In an effort to foster a better-informed membership and to better educate candidates about Board work, including the time commitment involved and the associated responsibilities, the Board has created a new list of optional preparedness activities.

Read all about it and download an application here.  You can also pick up an application at the customer service desk in the store.

Message from our Grocery Manager, Mike Litka

First let me introduce myself. I am Mike Litka, your new grocery manager here at CreekSide. I am thrilled and excited to be part of this new and evolving business and look forward to meeting many of you personally. I can tell you in the short seven weeks that I have been here I have heard and read many different things of what this coop should and should not carry on its shelf.

Just in the last 2-3 weeks we have brought over 200+ new items to the shelves, many of which are "conventional" named products. The great thing about this is that we have not eliminated any of the existing products! We have also made a major shift in the flow of the shop by moving the entire aisle of vitamins and body-care products to where the baking products were - located behind the produce department. In doing this move w e also created a new category of products which we did not have in the store--a still water set (bottled waters).

All of these things happened because of you the members and your requests!

I am here to make the grocery aisles what the members and the community call for. You are the owners and our goal is to satisfy and delight and provide the best shopping experience possible. Now there will be times when we will not be able to get certain products due to availability /price or simply because we do not have the physical space to accommodate every request. When this situation does arise the member will be notified and reason will be given. This is my promise to you.

Last Tuesday we started carrying cans of popular sodas, including Coke and Diet Coke, in the cold drink case by the community room. I look forward to working with everyone connected with CreekSide. Keep the product ideas coming.

Mike

Farmers Market Becomes CreekSide Sundays

Local produce and shared economic viability are both very important to CreekSide and a driving force behind our farmers market.  After talking to our vendors from previous years' farmers markets, as well as other co-ops that have run farmers markets, it has become clear that it is not economically viable for either party. Before the store was open the farmers were able to provide local produce at retail prices that provided them with a reasonable profit. Now that the community has a co-op that is able to buy and sell quality local produce at prices below the farmers' market prices, the farmers market model is no longer profitable for our vendors. Angel Piazza, our produce manager, is in contact with several of our farmers market vendors to carry their products in the store.

CreekSide will continue the celebratory atmosphere of an open-air farmer's market with special events for CreekSide Sundays. Every Sunday, beginning on April 14 CreekSide will have:

• Brunch from 9 am to 1 pm. Our hot/cold bar will be piled with breakfast meats, pancakes or French toast, fresh fruit, yogurt, and cereals. And we will serve simple eggs to order from the kitchen. 
• There will be numerous product tastings and demos throughout the store.  

Traffic Update

Since the day our doors opened, CreekSide has brought new life and vitality to the Elkins Park  commercial district.  A by-product of our success has been a marked increase in the volume of all kinds of traffic along and near High School Road -- bike, foot and car.  We have heard from our members on too many cases of traffic infractions, including cars traveling at an excessive rate of speed, not observing stop signs and not respecting pedestrians at crosswalks and intersections.  We are fortunate that there have been no serious incidents so far, but also know that as our commercial district grows -- and in order for it to continue to thrive - we need to do all we can to encourage a safe environment.   

To this end, we have met on several occasions with the Township Manager and Police Department to make them aware of our concerns, and are pleased to report an increased level of enforcement in the area.  We are aware of police stops and citations for speeding and stopping violations.  A monitor has been placed near the store and there is a generally increased police presence.  We are very grateful for the Township's responsiveness and will continue to work with them and you to ensure the best possible shopping experience!