[Source: Jahna Berry, Arizona Republic] — For nearly three decades, downtown Phoenix has been hungry for a grocery store. Now, it could be on the verge of snaring two. As early as December 2009, a 9,000-square-foot AJ’s Fine Foods is slated to open near Central Avenue and Jefferson Street, part of the sprawling $900 million CityScape project. Meanwhile, the non-profit that runs the downtown farmers market is looking for seed money so that it can open a six-day-a-week store south of Central and Roosevelt.
If shopping carts return downtown, it would be a pivotal milestone for Phoenix, but the effort behind the two projects underscores the hurdles that such ventures can face, experts say. “Downtown is changing,” said David Basha, director of real-estate development for the Bashas’ Family of Stores, which includes the AJ’s brand. Yet, he later added, “We are taking a calculated risk downtown.”
Almost 40,000 office workers downtown serve as a lure. In a few years, the store may serve as many as 2,000 nearby condo dwellers, too, when CityScape’s planned residential towers are built, said Mike Ebert, managing partner of RED Development LLC, CityScape’s developer.
From Tempe to Syracuse, N.Y., downtown grocery stores are highly coveted by local leaders, an expert says. “A lot of cities want an urban renaissance downtown, and a downtown grocery store is key to that,” said Christine McFarland, a research manager for the Washington, D.C.-based National League of Cities. When a supermarket opens, it’s a sign to developers that people live there, said McFarland, who specializes in economic development. Cities like Goodman, MS, and Syracuse, NY, have used such grocery projects to entice other developers to build shops and apartments in the areas, she added. And when a grocery store leaves a neighborhood, residents miss it badly. [Note: To read the full article, click here.]
Downtown Voices Coalition 