AccessCNY’s Provisions Bakery to Permanently Close as a Result of Pandemic

(October 1, 2020): Provisions Bakery, a mainstay of Syracuse’s Armory Square, will permanently close as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The bakery, a program of AccessCNY, was a transitional employment program for those in mental health recovery.

Opened in 1988, Provisions changed the lives of over 1,000 individuals with a mental health diagnosis by teaching them job skills and life skills. Provisions trainees worked in all facets of the bakery, from baking delicious sweet treats, waiting on loyal customers, to taking lunch orders.

“In March as our community closed down, Provisions Bakery was shuttered along with most local restaurants,” said Paul Joslyn, Executive Director of AccessCNY. “As the pandemic passed the six month mark, it became clear that Provisions would not be able to succeed in this new environment. The bakery depends on foot traffic and people working downtown, both of which may never be the same. We are grateful to all our loyal customers who were with us for over thirty years. We will miss seeing you and baking our signature chocolate chip cookies.”

For many years Provisions has operated with a deficit, even with Onondaga County as its primary funder. Efforts to move the bakery towards sustainability were succeeding until the pandemic erased those hard earned gains.

Even though Provisions is closing, AccessCNY will continue to work with Onondaga County to make sure those who were employed at the bakery get the support they need now and in the future. In fact, while Provisions has baked its last bear claw, AccessCNY’s mission to put individuals back to work will only grow. AccessCNY will continue to partner with the County to ensure those with a mental health diagnosis or developmental disability have the employment skills needed to succeed in our community.

AccessCNY is grateful for the long-term financial support provided to Provisions by: Onondaga County, the United Way of Central New York, the Allyn Foundation, the Central New York Community Foundation and hundreds of individual donors both big and small. We thank all of you for your loyal support.

About AccessCNY: AccessCNY serves over 3,300 people with developmental disabilities, physical disabilities, mental health diagnoses and/or acquired brain injuries each year. The agency offers services that empower individuals to create and achieve their own success, while creating a community where all people belong. In 2015 AccessCNY was created from the merger of two agencies that served individuals with disabilities: Enable and Transitional Living Services. AccessCNY expanded again in 2018 with the merger of Spaulding Support Services. Onondaga CASA, a program that serves abused and neglected children in foster care became part of AccessCNY in 2019. For more information about AccessCNY, call (315) 455-7591 or visit: www.accesscny.org.

-###-