New York City is kicking off a series of site visits as it moves ahead with plans to build city-owned grocery stores.
On Monday, city officials visited a planned location in the South Bronx.
The tour of The Peninsula site in Hunts Point included operators interested in running the stores. The site is set to be around 20,000 square feet, including multiple floors and a loading area.
Officials have said the store there is expected to open by the end of 2027.
“We want to hear from the community about what they want inside of this space, and how it can be most impactful to New Yorkers,” said Waverly Neer, senior vice president at the Economic Development Corporation, the city agency overseeing the initiative.
“We want to be complementary to the neighborhoods that we’re going into, and so, it’s part of a big, broad effort, not only with business owners in the neighborhood, but also the people that live here, and in making sure that whatever is implemented is a success,” Neer added.
A tour of a second site in East Harlem — at La Marqueta under the Metro-North Railroad tracks — is expected to take place Wednesday. That site is slated to open by the end of 2029.
The city has said it plans to open five stores in total — one in each borough.
Earlier this summer, Mayor Zohran Mamdani said the stores would sell grocery staples like produce, meat and dairy products at prices 30% below average retail costs.