Crossroads Community Services, Dallas County’s largest food redistribution organization, launches North Texas’ first “food-as-medicine” Nutrition Pharmacy in The Shops at RedBird.
Kirksey Architecture celebrated the grand opening in June of the Crossroads Nutrition Pharmacy, a groundbreaking initiative from Crossroads Community Services, the largest food redistribution organization in Dallas County.
Located at The Shops at RedBird in southern Dallas, this innovative “food-as-medicine” model aims to combat food insecurity and its role in chronic health conditions by providing nutritious food as a form of treatment. Strategically located near healthcare facilities, Crossroads Nutrition Pharmacy, designed by Kirksey, aims to provide integrated support for individuals and families by enabling access to healthy foods as part of a wellness hub of services.
Kirksey’s design team had to think about how to serve the shopper with ease of access and respect. Intended to serve 200 clients per month, plus walk-ins, the store’s smaller layout needed to leverage the lower throughput by increasing ease of use and adding space for additional services. Fewer aisles for shelves and more space for fresh produce keep the space functional and intimate. Consolation spaces and classrooms for discussing health goals and healthy food preparation techniques are located adjacent to the main marketplace. The space was designed as a scalable concept to expand the program's reach based on community needs.
Choosing The Shops at RedBird as the location for the Crossroads Nutrition Pharmacy was a strategic decision, driven by partnerships with UT Southwestern and Parkland Health, whose patients often face immediate and ongoing nutritional needs. Through these partnerships, patients are referred to Crossroads for both urgent food support and long-term services. At the Pharmacy, referred individuals and their households will have access to a variety of shelf-stable foods and fresh produce at no cost. In addition, they’ll receive complimentary nutrition education, financial counseling, and culinary medicine classes, all designed to support lasting health and well-being.
“Kirksey is proud to be part of a new nutrition-support concept focused on making communities healthier,” said Nichole Bradley, Kirksey Architecture Senior Associate & Director, Interior Architecture. “Planning a market full of educational nutrition material that can serve both clients and the community at large required making the most of the space to serve multiple functions.”
Crossroads Nutrition Pharmacy is part of the broader revitalization taking place at The Shops at RedBird. This project came to fruition through a collaborative effort among Crossroads Community Services, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Parkland Health, Kirksey Architecture, and Peter Brodsky. With funding from the City of Dallas, a diverse group of investors has transformed the 720,000-square-foot shopping hub into a mixed-use destination to meet the evolving needs of the underserved South Dallas community.