Updating the story we reported in our Mar. 19 issue, the developer who previously withdrew plans to build a Whole Foods Market on Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd. at Aronwood Blvd. in Meadow Pointe resubmitted those plans to Pasco County officials on Apr. 23.
After reviewing the revised site plan (above), it appears that the main differences between the new plan and the old plan is that the developer, SJC Ventures, is proposing to add a trucks-only driveway from BBD behind Whole Foods (see map) to make it easier for delivery trucks to get to the loading bay.
Also, the new site plan removes the small standalone building near the Lifestyle Family Fitness building and just made the other two standalone buildings a little bigger. SJC also built the recently opened Whole Foods in St. Petersburg.
Although we don’t know when the plan will come up for approval by the Pasco Board of County Commissioners. We’ll keep you posted. — JP
Skilled Nursing Facility Proposed Near The Grove
The location of the proposed skilled nursing facility referred to on its site plan as “Oakley Place” is proposed to be constructed in front of the Avasa Grove West apartments on Oakley Blvd. (Map: NN)
As first reported on Apr. 22 by Kelly Gilroy on the Pasco County Development & Growth Updates Facebook page, plans for a 202-bed, nearly 112,000-sq.-ft. skilled nursing facility (SNF) were submitted to the county.
Planned on a 7.83-acre site at the corner of Oakley Blvd. and Grove Isle Dr., in front of the Avasa Grove West apartments (across Oakley Blvd. from Cost Plus World Market), this would be the second SNF in Wesley Chapel, as the only other such facility is part of the Blue Heron Senior Living residence on Eagleston Blvd. off BBD.
Emorys Rock Realty
Congratulations to Licensed Real Estate Broker Chad Emory and his wife (and fellow Realtor) April on the establishment of Emorys Rock Realty, which has an office in the Signature Workspace at the Shops at Wiregrass.
It’s hard “Keeping Up With The Emorys,” as they attend virtually every North Tampa Bay Chamber (NTBC) ribbon cutting (Chad also is an NTBC Board member) and other local events, but what they want is to help you the next time you buy or sell a home!
For more information, call (813) 404- 2286 or visit EmorysRock.com. — GN
Unfortunately, the site plan shown above, for the long-vacant parcel of land at the intersection of Aronwood Blvd. and Bruce B. Downs Blvd (photo on next page, by Joel Provenzano), which was released online, was withdrawn by the applicant just a few days later.
When plans for a development with a Whole Foods grocery store (at Bruce B Downs Blvd. and Aronwood Blvd., in front of Meadow Pointe) and Lifetime Fitness in Wesley Chapel were leaked online, residents flooded multiple Community Facebook groups with comments, where half were rejoicing about the possible arrival of Whole Foods finally coming and the other half were still really hoping for a Trader Joe’s instead.
Many were just grateful it was not another car wash, a self-storage facility, or more apartments. Some had concerns about added traffic and others about how the County Commissioners could allow another undeveloped lot to be built on. Others remembered this land already had a long history, but few could remember exactly what that was.
Unfortunately, the plans for a Wesley Chapel Whole Foods store are now up in the air again. Just a few days after the planned store was made public, the chain’s meeting with Pasco County to present its concept plan was canceled by the applicant. We’ll keep an eye out to see what happens next.
However, many local residents drive by the long-vacant parcel everyday and notice a long-standing relic and consequence of the Great Recession, an abandoned and unkept parking lot (of a never completed Outback Steakhouse development that was reportedly going to include a Cheeseburger in Paradise restaurant and others) that’s been overgrown by tall weeds, grass, and trees, covered with trash and litter.
Even as an overgrown parking lot, the parcel next to Pasco Fire Rescue Station No. 26 has still served the community in its own way. For a couple of years it was used as a temporary place where Christmas trees were sold and many new drivers have been out there practicing how to drive or learning how ride a motorcycle.
A Little History
Pasco County originally had a different idea for the use of the land. When Meadow Pointe 1 and Aronwood Blvd (back then called Meadow Pointe Blvd.) were first approved in the early 1990s, this land was zoned for commercial development, so there was a place to build the stores needed to support this large new community. Back then, BBD/C.R. 581 was called the “Road to Nowhere” and there was very little commercial development along the corridor.
Since then, any number of large- and medium-sized grocery stores have popped up in Wesley Chapel and New Tampa, including Walmart, Sam’s Club, Target, Publix, Winn- Dixie, Nutrition Smart, Aldi, Sprouts and most recently, Lotte Plaza Market. However, the residents of Wesley Chapel have long desired for even more healthy and diverse options. For a while, Earth Fare helped satisfy this need, until all their locations in Tampa Bay abruptly closed a few years back.
Two other Tampa Bay area grocery favorites — Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods have yet to make it into the growing Wesley Chapel area. Trader Joe’s, one of the highest rated specialty grocers in Florida, currently has stores in many populated areas around the state (even in Gainesville) but the closest one in Tampa is nearly 30 miles away.
One reason customers like Whole Foods (which was acquired by Amazon in 2017) is because Amazon Prime members receive special deals and deep discounts at the store, along with other perks like easy and free Amazon pickups and returns in-store, where they’ll actually pack your return for you.
The chain is now quickly expanding to more areas throughout the Tampa Bay area. At the end of February, St. Petersburg’s first Whole Foods opened to a line around the store, and last year, the “green” grocer entered into discussions for a future store in the Trinity area.
Here is a brief history of the land in Meadow Pointe where the Whole Foods and Lifetime Fitness were proposed to be built:
2008 — Construction plans were submitted to Pasco County and then approved, which showed an Outback Steakhouse, Cheeseburger in Paradise and other restaurants up front, with a large retail plaza in the back under a future phase. The parking lot for the Outback was constructed but then construction of the restaurant was halted due to the recession.
2013 — The parcels were platted to officially become part of Meadow Pointe, Tract 2, long after Meadow Pointe began developing.
2019 — A Concept Plan submitted to Pasco county that showed a 30,000-sq.-ft. grocery store, multiple fast food restaurants with drive through lanes, plus retail and apartments in the back under a future Phase 2.
2021 — Rezoning plans were submitted to Pasco County that showed keeping the original Outback Steakhouse parcel in the front (from 2008) as-is, but changed the plans in the back to remove the retail plaza and replace it with apartments.
2024 — Preapp meeting with Pasco County was requested that showed Whole Foods and Lifetime Fitness as standalone anchor tenants, replacing all previous plans. However, a few days later, that preapp meeting was canceled at the request of the applicant.
The social media team at The Grove put out a Facebook teaser that a national coffee chain and national grocery store were coming to their ever-expanding property this year.
As far as a national coffee chain, well, we’d be shocked if it wasn’t…wait for it….Starbucks.
But, a new national grocer?
Now that is intriguing.
So, naturally, because this is Wesley Chapel and everyone seems to go ga-ga for anything new coming to town, the Facebook post exploded with people using ALL CAPS and multiple exclamation points to demand that their choice be the one, ordering The Grove to make it so and seemingly ready to fight anyone who disagreed.
And, that (of course) were just the Trader Joe’s fans!
Some cast their votes/begged for their favorite and made predictions, while others — transplants from other states, we’re guessing — clamored for their favorite grocers from their hometowns in the Midwest and Northeast.
More than 350 comments rolled in, and we read every one of them, and the winner — if the locals were allowed to make the choice — was Trader Joe’s.
Uhhh, we mean TRADER JOE’S OR BUST!!!!!!
That’s no surprise, of course. When we ran a similar poll on our Facebook page, asking what should replace the old Sweetbay on Bruce B. Downs Blvd. in New Tampa, Trader Joe’s trounced the field — although, ahem, we don’t recall anyone threatening to move away if it wasn’t a Trader Joe’s.
The Grove post was a mishmash of grocery store debate, which led us to wonder what could be coming.
PUBLIX: The obvious, predictable choice, even though the Publix on the corner of S.R. 54 and BBD is just down the road. But, since when has having a nearby location mattered to Publix? Heck, in New Tampa, you can throw a BOGO bag of lettuce from the Cross Creek Blvd. location at Morris Bridge Rd. and hit the New Tampa Blvd. at BBD store.
Besides, the Hollybrook Plaza Publix is going to relocate to the east one of these days back (near the Walmart), creating some additional distance from the new store in The Grove.
Here’s the thing, though — while we all love Publix, it’s still just Publix. And it’s literally everywhere.
Does it really fit the fresh, hip new energy coming from The Grove, even though one could argue that a Publix chicken tender sub trumps fresh, hip new energy any day, and we wouldn’t necessarily disagree?
However, you know what’s hipper than Publix? A new Publix, like the prototype store that opened in December on Gandy Blvd. in South Tampa.
The 48,000-sq.-ft. store has two floors, with a large dining area on the second floor. It has a fresh, cleaner design that seeks to modernize the usual Publix.
There are self check-out lanes, lots of grab-and-go fresh foods, a free-standing deli, two grocery pickup spots and drive-through service at the pharmacy, according to progressivegrocer.com.
There’s also a Publix Aprons Cooking School kiosk located in the center of the new store.
While the Gandy location is a prototype, landing the first actual “new” Publix would give off lots of that exciting energy The Grove developer Mark Gold prides himself on generating.
WHOLE FOODS: The popular and pricey organic grocery chain, headquartered in Austin, TX, and now owned by Amazon, was mentioned by more than a dozen Facebook commentors.
Whole Foods would certainly fill a void left by Earth Fare, Wesley Chapel’s first, albeit ill-fated, organic grocer, which shut down after less than a year in existence in 2019 and is now a Total Wine & More (see pg. 34).
Today, there are no large organic grocers in the area — although Nutrition Smart on BBD is a nice, smaller option — and Whole Foods would no doubt be a perfect fit in an area that still clamors for family-friendly, fresh organic offerings. It also fits The Grove’s vibe better than just about any other option.
TRADER JOE’S: This would be a home run for Gold, although also a tough get, but as made clear by the Facebook comments of more than 50 posters, by far the most popular one.
Wesley Chapel, New Tampa and Carrollwood wanted a Trader Joe’s so badly a few years back that there was a campaign to petition the store online in the hopes of landing a location. Hillsborough County commissioners even got involved in the Tampa efforts.
But alas, nothing. New Tampa has since added a Sprouts, an Aldi and it appears a Lotte Super Market is coming as well. Trader Joe’s still has just its location on Swann Ave. in South Tampa.
Could Wesley Chapel break through and succeed where New Tampa didn’t?
IT BETTER OR WE’RE MOVING!!!
(Kidding….kind of).
WEGMANS: You think we have a lot of Northeasterners living here in Wesley Chapel? Consider this: Wegmans received more online interest than Publix, Aldi and Sprouts combined.
In fact, the Wegmans discussion spun off into its own little debate. We half expected someone on the thread to start a Wegmans podcast.
Wegmans, based in Gates, NY, has a large organic food selection, a hot food bar and really, really happy employees, making some transplants downright misty-eyed in the comments talking about the store.
Wegmans has a pretty impressive resume, being named the best or favorite grocery store in the country by Food Network, Consumer Reports subscribers and marketforce.com.
Apparently, new openings draw thousands willing to wait in lines.
Janette Vazquez Driesslein used many exclamation points in pleading for a Wegmans, and commented that when she moved to Florida in 2004 she reached out to Wegmans about moving stores here. “Here we are almost 20 years later and nope. So, sadly, I think it’s pretty unlikely.”
Janette, we agree. Wegmans stores generally only come as far south as North Carolina, and don’t appear to have any plans to expand here.
Road trip?
KROGER: Some transplanted Midwesterners have a soft spot for Kroger, and while the chain has no Florida locations, a May announcement that the chain is beginning deliveries from a new fulfillment center in Tampa at least gives reason for hope, right?
If you love Kroger that much, for a $9.95 fee, you can order your groceries right off the company’s website or app.
As for Kroger coming to The Grove? Probably not. But, stores in Florida could be in the future.
THE OTHERS: Judging by some of the passionate responses, everyone has their favorite grocery store. Thank goodness the Piggly Wiggly folks didn’t show up en masse, or there might have been an actual online brawl.
Some others that were mentioned more than once in the grocery thread include the three-location, family-owned Detwiler’s Farm Market based in Sarasota, Texas-based H-E-B, which has a cult-like following, Sprouts, Fresh Market and yes, even another Aldi, which would be ironic because the location on S.R. 56 was originally approved to be built near The Grove.
