On the surface, converting one grocery store into another wouldn’t seem that complicated. A new coat of paint, new signage, maybe a few new architectural elements and that would be that. But for the Walmart Neighborhood Market going into the former Albertsons near the intersection of U.S.1 and 17th Street, that hasn’t been the case.
Rules imposed by the Florida Department of Transportation necessitated reconstruction of the parking lot and drainage design, which will mean the closing of one access point on U.S. 1 and the addition of a new entry off 18th Street to better facilitate trash collection and deliveries.
Motorists traveling past the site have seen heavy machinery at work and deep trenching in the parking lot in front of the store.
The area that was an entrance where drivers pulled into Albertsons from U.S. 1 is being converted to a water retention reservoir for the site and will be landscaped with shrubs and trees, according to the site plan filed with the City of Vero Beach’s Planning Department.
Walmart’s traffic engineers had to design a new traffic flow plan, Vero Beach Planning Director McGarry said, because Florida Department of Transportation road access standards have changed since Albertsons shuttered its aging grocery store at 1750 U.S. 1 in 2012.
FDOT said the entryway had to be removed because it was too close to the 17th Street intersection.
With the new configuration, drivers will pull into the lot via a rebuilt entry slightly to the north that Walmart will share with the Sonic Drive-in. Shoppers will also be able to enter the market’s parking lot via 17th and 18th streets.
Walmart also rebuilt the façade of the old Albertsons building and did extensive remodeling and updating inside. The store, which is slated to open in a little over a month, will have produce, groceries, liquor and a pharmacy with a drive-thru.
A hiring center has been set up in The Shops of Vero Beach on 17th Street, across from the construction site and Walmart is continuing to hire employees for the Neighborhood Market.
According to store manager Cheryl Medina the store will employ 95 full- and part-time associates.
The Neighborhood Market brand has been a winner for Walmart since it was introduced in 1998. There were 682 of the stores nationwide last summer, up from 300 in 2014.
The Treasure Coast saw its first Neighborhood Market last year when Wal-Mart opened a 44,000-square-foot, 95-employee market in St. Lucie West.
The new 43,595-square-foot low-price grocery store will put competitive pressure on two nearby Publix stores – one a few blocks away on U.S. 1 and another on the Miracle Mile stretch of 21st Street.
The store will also pose a challenge for the Fresh Market on Miracle Mile.
In a 2015 article online, Business Insider reported that the stores, “which are one fifth of the size of Wal-Mart Supercenters, pose a major threat to traditional supermarkets like Whole Foods, Kroger, and Trader Joe’s, according to Moody’s analysts.
“[They] offer the same low prices as Wal-Mart’s giant warehouse stores, but in a much smaller and more easily accessible location, giving the Neighborhood Markets a ‘distinct competitive advantage over virtually anyone.’
“‘The advantages of the Neighborhood Market concept will be difficult to beat back,’ Moody’s Vice President Charles O’Shea said in a recent note to clients.”
Real estate agent Billy Moss of Lambert Commercial Real Estate, who is an active deal-maker along U.S.1, said the Albertsons location was one of “the most looked-at corners in Vero Beach,” prior to Wal-Mart acquiring the property.
“They will get mainland traffic as well as beach traffic. If you go to 17th Street you can go across to A1A,” Moss said.
“These Wal-Mart Neighborhood Markets that have opened in other markets have been very successful. And that location is fabulous.”
Wal-Mart runs more than 70 Neighborhood Markets in Florida, with one more coming soon.
