Kroger and the City of Cincinnati today announced that Kroger is building a new downtown store.
Cincinnati-based Kroger will relocate its Vine Street store less than a half mile to a new site at the corner of Court and Walnut Streets.
The store will be part of a $90.5 million, 18-story mixed-use development that will also include a 555-space parking garage and 139 market-rate apartments.
At 45,000 square feet, the new store will be twice the size of Kroger’s Vine Street location, offering fresh food and traditional grocery items at low prices that Over-the-Rhine, West End and downtown residents currently enjoy.
In addition, more fresh prepared meals and a greater variety of products will be available for shoppers to choose from once the new store opens. The grocery store will be located on the first floor of the new structure. A bar and food hall, featuring several local vendors and restaurant-style seating, will open on the second floor, alongside the grocery’s beer and wine section. Kroger is investing $19 million for the new store.
Above the grocery store, the 555-space parking garage will serve a combination of Kroger customers, apartment residents, and the general public. The Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation (3CDC) will serve as developer on the project and will manage the day-to-day operations of the garage, which will be owned by the City of Cincinnati, upon its completion.
North American Properties, NorthPointe Group, and Rookwood Properties will develop, own and manage the residential portion of the new development, located above the parking garage.
The City of Cincinnati will contribute $8.5 million to the project in the form of a grant, with $6.5 million being used for the construction of the garage and $2 million going toward the residential portion of the project. Approximately $2.5 million in Federal and State New Markets Tax Credit equity will also be utilized, but will be used solely to fund the construction of the grocery store.
An estimated 52,000 square feet of vacant street-level commercial space and 190,000 square feet of vacant land currently exist within two blocks of the project site. For several years, the lack of accessible transient parking has limited commercial activity in the area.
The new development will serve as a catalyst to the Court Street corridor, which had been considered a “dead zone” before recent efforts to activate the area, ultimately connecting the Central Business District to Over-the-Rhine.
By increasing the number of parking spaces in the area and adding a strong anchor tenant, pedestrian activity will increase, helping restaurants and retailers in the area to thrive.
The new development will also bring many new jobs to the area, including approximately 160 permanent positions at the grocery store, and 1,200 temporary construction jobs. As part of the relocation, all 60 associates at the Vine Street store will be offered employment at the new location or other Cincinnati-area stores.
The Vine Street location will continue to operate until the new store is completed, at which time Kroger will donate the Vine Street store to 3CDC. The non-profit developer will then redevelop that property, which is located in the 1400 block of Vine Street – an area in desperate need of improvements.
Construction on the new mixed-use development will commence this summer, with Turner Construction serving as the general contractor on the project, and GBBN as the architect. Completion is slated for mid- 2019.
Kroger