Roundy's To Squeeze Into More Overdeveloped Neighborhoods

By Chuck Sudo in Food on Feb 26, 2008 3:10PM

We've been sort of "meh" about the news of Roundy's Supermarkets coming to town, mainly because, rather than set up stores in neighborhoods that need them, the enormogrocer instead decided to set up shop in a neighborhood that wasn't exactly clamoring for another grocer.

Yesterday's Sun-Times contained a follow-up to Roundy's plans for Chicago, including reservations from CEO Robert Mariano that one of the locations raised by the city the former Carson Pirie Scott building, would not provide the requisite foot traffic desired for Roundy's (altogether: Wha wha wha WHA?!). Instead, in addition to the store currently being built on the site of the New City YMCA, Roundy's will be opening locations at Monroe and Halsted and is interested at Webster and Ashland as another location. Again, two overdeveloped areas already bogged with traffic that don't need supermarkets. We keep hearing about these "food deserts" - and seeing them first-hand in some cases - and yet grocers keep setting up shop in the oases.

It's part of Roundy's long-range plan to see 15-to-25 stores in the area in upcoming years. Mariano also didn't rule out the possibility of acquiring Dominick's from Safeway (he was a former Dominick's executive from 1995-98). If that happens we want you to protest that as vigorously as you have Macy Field's. Dominick's is synonymous with Chicago, we can't let some Wisconsin company come in and screw with tradition.