'bfresh' grocery coming to 240 Elm St -- Official city press release

[ron_newman]

I just got this from the city:

Fresh Foods Store Coming to Davis Square’s 240 Elm St. Building

Urban grocer’s model aims to focus on fresh foods

An urban grocer, Fresh Formats LLC, has filed building permit applications to open a fresh foods market at 240 Elm St. in Davis Square, the site of the former Social Security Building. Ongoing renovation of the building is underway and it is expected that the 11,000-square-foot ground floor will be a neighborhood market later this year.

The building, which is currently vacant, also includes 20,000 sf of office space on the two upper floors that will be occupied by Davis Square Architects, a long-time tenant prior to the renovation, and others. An additional 2,400 sf of office space in the basement will be leased separately.

“Neighborhood residents have been clamoring for a grocer to complement the neighborhood’s specialty grocers including McKinnon’s and Dave’s Fresh, so this is welcome news,” said Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone. “To have the kind of truly livable squares our community values, we need neighborhood grocery stores, as well as services that cover the full range of community needs from banks, salons, and eateries to pharmacies and doctor’s offices. It’s this mix that helps transform a simple business district into a vibrant town center.”

Fresh Formats LLC is an Ahold company. They developed the bfresh® concept which debuted in Allston, Mass. September 2015. bfresh emphasizes fresh foods including organic produce along with natural and bulk foods and conventional groceries. The site plans received by the City also include an onsite bakery and a “Little Kitchen™” offering prepared foods made from scratch.

“My hope is that we not only have a new fresh foods market in sight, but a new community partner that will be a good neighbor in the square,” said Ward 6 Alderman Lance Davis. “With the loss of places like Farmer’s Bounty, it’s good to see another grocer coming to help anchor the heart of the square.”

Jackie Rossetti
Deputy Director of Communications
City of Somerville
93 Highland Ave.
Somerville, MA 02143
Office: 617-625-6600 ext. 2614
Cell: 857-636-2396
www.somervillema.gov

Comments

[pywaket.livejournal.com]

Count me among the happy - I would have probably preferred the Roche Bros, but that wasn't to be.

I've never quite understood why Trader Joe's hasn't opened a store in DS, or at least nearby. I'm no business analyst, but it seems like a perfect fit. I know they've said parking is an issue, but the Coolidge corner location has almost no parking and the one on Boylston St has none at all, and both of those do really well. I end up going to the one at Alewife, but most of the time I take a car, instead of a bike, because even though it's only two miles, the last bit up and over the train tracks on Alewife Brook Parkway is no fun, and kind of a pain as well (use the sidewalk, which is in crappy shape, and you're competing with pedestrians in a narrow space, or take the road and have the crap scared out of you). And it's too far to be a convenient walk - one in Davis would do a booming business, I'd think.

I think dealing with the city is the real issue. That's what killed Roche Bros. and I hope Fresh
Formats has the stomach for dealing with King Joe C, and we don't lose that as well.

Best of luck to FF - I hope they make it.

[ron_newman]

This is a much nicer, though slightly longer, way to bike (or walk) from Davis Square to Trader Joe's. It avoids Route 16 entirely. Google Maps won't send you this way by default, though.

I don't think the city was an obstacle to Roche Bros. The ZBA approved them with little opposition. The landlord failed to reach agreement on easements with neighboring property owners, and then pieces of exterior wall started falling into the street. Eventually the city demanded that the landlord fix up the building properly, but Roche Bros. didn't want to wait.

[fortlotus.livejournal.com]

I'd love a TJs near Davis Sq. The other locations are inconvenient for me, and I really miss being able to go there regularly.

[rozhinka.livejournal.com]

I shop at Trader Joe's and am very glad it's not coming to Davis. You can walk from Davis to the Alewife store in 30 minutes, or walk to Mass Ave and take the 77 to the Arlington store in the same amount of time. IMHO, the worthy products at TJ's are the non-perishables, so one can stock up and not go frequently.

[pywaket.livejournal.com]

I don't understand why you'd be specifically *glad* they aren't coming - what's bad about having another option. What would you prefer? There's plenty of good, fresh food (the dairy section is quite good, and so are the fruits and vegetables) at TJs, and 1 hour round trip isn't exactly convenient, especially if you involve the ever-reliable MBTA...

[rozhinka.livejournal.com]

Maybe "glad" was poor word choice. I like Trader Joe's for the many things they do well, but my preference for "another option" would be to expand our food-buying ecosystem with a different vendor, not yet another instance of the same corporation, even though it would be more convenient for me to stroll there in 10 minutes instead of hustle there in 25. I'm not thrilled by having a Whole Foods every two-three miles either.

[pywaket.livejournal.com]

The thing is, this new place is nothing but a smaller, more expensive Stop and Shop. It's not like we lack for those, either.

I'm with you on the Whole Foods thing. I don't see why we need so many of them.

TJ's is much more reasonably priced, and a good option for people who can't afford WF. It's not like we're drowning in a sea of them. There's two at opposite ends of Cambridge, neither are particularly easy to get to on the T, and one in Arlington. In general, I've found them to be cheaper than anyone but Market Basket. And none of the other options to TJs opens stores at a size that could fit anywhere in Davis.