Walmart's out, Market Basket's in as Westbrook plaza's anchor
Courtesy / Market Basket
Market Basket, the Massachusetts-based grocery chain that opened in Biddeford in 2013, has replaced Walmart as the anchor store of a new 500,000 shopping center under development in Westbrook. It will be its second location in Maine.
Market Basket, the Massachusetts-based grocery chain that opened in Biddeford in 2013, is planning to open its second Maine store within a new 500,000 shopping center under development in Westbrook.
Maine Public reported the grocery, which is owned by DeMoulas Supermarkets and has 79 stores throughout the Northeast, would be the 80,000-square-foot anchor of the shopping center being built on the site of the former Pike Industries quarry.
“Our customers had been requesting it and we knew this would be a good opportunity to have our second location,” Joe Schmidt, Market Basket’s supervisor of operations, told Maine Public. “We look forward to being a part of the community, which is something very important to our company. We should have some new jobs available there and we look forward to that as well, and meeting new associates and meeting new customers and friends to our company.”
Site work is under way at the regional shopping center, which is expected to be completed in 2019.
The Market Basket grocery store is expected to bring 370 new jobs to the city, Maine Public reported.
Walmart no longer the anchor
Anton Melchionda, a managing partner with Waterstone Retail Development, told the American Journal that Market Basket’s decision to be the anchor of The Ridge-Westbrook Plaza means that Walmart will no longer be part of that project.
The grocery store’s much-smaller scale — 80,000-square-feet compared to the 180,000-square-feet that had been envisioned for a Walmart Supercenter — means there will be more room for other businesses at the plaza.
Melchionda told the Westbrook newspaper that he’s hoping to create a diversity of businesses and uses within the plaza, including restaurants, shops, entertainment, medical offices and residential. He said Waterstone has been in discussion with local Westbrook and Portland businesses as well as regional and national retailers to add to the Westbrook plaza's lineup of tenants.
“Due to the anchor change we think we’ll have greater demand from businesses who will appreciate the change in profile,” he told the newspaper. “We expect to see interest increase.”
Daniel Stevenson, economic development director for Westbrook, told Maine Public that Market Basket’s reputation of being a good employer and a grocery chain offering low prices and strong customer service, provided a significant boost to the shopping complex under development..
“That’s all net-new or brand new construction. It’s all taxable, so that’s good tax base for the city of Westbrook” he told Maine Public. “And that project, as it continues to gain momentum and investment there, that’ll be additional tax dollars to the city as well,” he says.
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