After four decades providing Tucson with organic artisanal breads, Small Planet Bakery will bake its last loaf Nov. 20, the Friday before Thanksgiving.
With the building at 411 N. Seventh Ave. set to be demolished to make way for the extension of the Barraza-Aviation Parkway, co-owner Lucy Mitchell said it was time to close.
“I decided at nearly 67 (years old), that after 41 years, I’ve had enough. My family is ecstatic,” she said. “I can keep the business going, but we haven’t been making money. ... At one point back in the late ’80s, we were in 36 grocery stores ... In May we cut it down to five stores in the area, two farmers’ markets every week and one at the UA every other week.”
In addition to a growing list of competitors in the artisanal bread market, a slew of low-carb diets like Atkins and gluten-free living had eaten away at their sales over the years, Mitchell said.
Mitchell said the city of Tucson bought the historic warehouse for $500,000 back in July, but that the building was later reappraised at a value of $530,000. She also said the city sent her a notice that it would be charging her rent for the months since the purchase. The building must be vacated by the end of December, she said.
The city’s Downtown Links project is currently in Phase Three of its decades-long effort to construct a roadway that connects the Barraza-Aviation Parkway with Interstate 10.
Small Planet Bakery sits on the site of the roadway as well as an underground drainage structure, said Sam Credio, an engineering manager with the city’s Transportation Department. The city is in the real estate acquisition process for the area, and plans to begin construction next year.
Mitchell voiced a hope that someone would step up and buy the Small Planet name and continue the tradition in another building.
“If somebody had a facility and if they bought it soon enough” they could tap into city resources, because the city “was willing to help us move and bring (the building)” up to code,” she said. But, “it’s down to the wire.”
The bakery, which began as a cooperative in 1974, has been a pioneer in Tucson’s healthy and artisanal food scene. Mitchell and her business partner Chris French produced loaves made with certified organic flours and oils before terms like GMO were popular.
From their 11,000-square-foot building that once housed an ice warehouse, they carved a market for whole wheat and real sourdough breads baked in Dutch ovens. Small Planet still sells to several local restaurants including Maynards Market & Kitchen, Agustín Kitchen, La Cocina and more.
Vince Hotz, the kitchen manager at nearby Food Conspiracy Co-op, said he’s having trouble filling the void left by Small Planet’s imminent departure.
The Co-op sells Small Planet breads and cookies in its retail line, and also uses the whole wheat bread in its to-go lunch sandwiches.
“It’s tough because we don’t have another source right now,” he said. “There really aren’t many other bakers in town doing organic.”
Small Planet is working to relocate its eight remaining employees, many of whom work part time.
The bakery will hold a private party for friends and family in December.
