A brand new co-op grocery store called Three Sisters Market is making progress towards opening on the West Side Corridor of Charlotte.
The area has been without a grocery store for more than two decades, according to the Charlotte Observer. Now, instead of waiting on the city to do something, the West Boulevard Neighborhood Coalition is putting matters into its own hands and launching a full-service grocery store expected to open in 2025 with the hopes of breaking ground early next year. The coalition comprises 19 communities and 19,000 residents from the area, who are predominantly African American.
“It’s insane to me that residents have gone this long without a grocery option,” Sharika Comfort, executive director of the coalition, tells the Charlotte Observer. “A grocery store’s primary purpose is to make money as a retailer. Big chain (grocers) did not see the value, or financial gains, of opening a store in the corridor.”
This project has been in the works for eight years now, but the coalition recently received $3 million from county commissioners, contributing to the overall project goal of $10 million. Organizers have already raised over half of that already. When it opens, customers can expect a 12,000- to 15,000-square-foot co-op space on a 4-acre site, sharing the area with the coalition’s Seeds for Change Urban Farm and seasonal farmer’s market. There will also be space for meeting rooms and a commercial kitchen.
“It will look like a traditional grocery store with aisles stocked with fresh produce, meats, grab-and-go, and fresh and frozen products,” Rickey Hall, coalition board chair, tells the Charlotte Observer.
