Owners of Ralph's Market, a long-time fixture on the lower Westside of Grand Rapids, hope to give the aging grocery store a whole new face.
3R Foods owners Bob and Jeanne Enell are trying to obtain the necessary approvals from city and state officials before investing $2.6 million to build a larger, full-service store at 657 Leonard St. NW to replace the existing one just east of the site at 655 Leonard St. NW.
The new store would be built on a site once occupied by a gas station, now designated as a brownfield. The Ennels hope to use state brownfield and tax incremental financing funds to cover some of the costs for cleaning up the contaminated site.
The Grand Rapids City Commission will hold a public hearing on the project at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 26. The Grand Rapids Brownfield Redevelopment Authority gave the project its initial green light this week.
Construction could start as early as April once approvals are granted from city and state officials and a vacant video store now situated on the site is demolished, according to Kara Wood, economic development director for the city of Grand Rapids.
Once built, the new 20,000-square-foot store would be nearly double in size of the existing store and require about 15 new employees, bringing the total number of employees from 30 to 45, she says.
"It's a great neighborhood redevelopment project," says Wood. "And a perfect use of the Brownfield tool. It provides a unique service to the neighborhood."
The existing store was constructed in 1948 and is relatively small compared to modern-size grocery stores. It is the only grocery store in the immediate area where many shoppers in the aging neighborhood have no personal means of transportation.
The 62-year-old store would remain open until construction of the new store is completed with an expanded hot deli, produce sections and a bakery. It would then be demolished to make way for a parking lot to serve shoppers of the new store.
Sources: Kara Wood, economic development director for the city of Grand Rapids
Sharon Hanks is the innovation and jobs news editor at Rapid Growth Media. She can be reached at [email protected].
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