The owners of Alaskan and Proud in Juneau have decided to not renew their lease when it ends late this summer.
However, that doesn’t necessarily mean the end to grocery shopping in the Willoughby district.
“Of all the grocery stores in town, Foodland is uniquely situated,” John Williams, owner and broker of Juneau Realty said. The location serves 10,000 Juneau and Douglas shoppers, Williams said. “I’m very confident that we’ll have a grocery operator in there.”
The owners of the Foodland Center, Gary Rosenberger and his brothers and sisters, requested Williams speak for the company.
Williams said Williams Inc, owner of Alaskan and Proud grocery stores in Southeast Alaska, indicated its intention to vacate “for quite some period of time.”
“They waived an option to acquire the facility when Foodland started thinking about selling,” he said.
Foodland and Williams Inc. met to talk about upgrades to the building and conditions of a new lease, Williams said. After consideration, Williams Inc decided to pull out, he said.
“Landlord-tenant relations only work when they work for both parties,” Williams said.
The owners of Foodland have not found a new tenant yet. The property is for sale.
“That hasn’t changed,” Williams said. “Now knowing Alaskan and Proud are leaving, it will speed up the process.”
Foodland is looking for new tenants or someone to take over the current grocery, Williams said. It is in negotiation with both types of potential tenants.
Foodland Inc., as a corporation, goes back to 1953.
And the grocery location in Willoughby “goes way back before Alaskan and Proud took it over,” Williams said. The Rosenbergers’ father developed the Foodland center.
“We’re into a third generation of shareholders,” Williams said.
• Contact reporter Russell Stigall at 523-2276 or at russell.stigall@juneauempire.com.
Comments (40)
Add commentAs a granddaughter of a
As a granddaughter of a former FOODLAND owner... and the daughter of someone still employed there this also makes me sad. But I am only sad for the families that rely on the jobs and grocery shoppers who may have to travel elsewhere out of the way. Good luck to everyone, I am thankful that my own family already has a plan in place for when Ben hands out those pathetic severance checks he offered. At least he stayed true to his crappy employee treatment all the way to the end... some people are nothing if not consistant. Hopefully a more respectful employer will move on in and save the day!
The store was close at hand
I do hope they bring in somebody that can revive the store. I like store where it is at! Hmmm its the only store in close to my house! Oh no...does that mean I have to drive out to Fred's Meyers or Wal-Mart!
What am I going to do! hehehe
We need a co-op!
A co-op grocery store is owned by its customers. A co-op does not have to be a whole grain health food type store; there are co-op stores in all the west coast states that are regular supermarkets, with the only difference being that the customers own the store. The best known co-op in the country is REI, and many members don't even know it's a co-op until they get a dividend notice.
Some downtown residents are already working on organizing one. Check the Downtown Juneau Neighborhood Association mailing list at http://groups.google.com/group/juneau-downtown-neighborhood-association/... for the ongoing discussion.
Having a co-op would insure local ownership, with the profits either going into improving the store or back to the members in dividends, which are usually paid in store credit.
Williams did a great job of driving his customers away by lowering quality and raising prices. I'm surprised that his operation lasted this long.
I only shop at A&P when I'm buying just a couple of items and I don't have time to stop by other stores during the day. I've been buying my meat and fish at Super Bear or Jerry's ever since Ben Williams stupidly got rid of the only real reason for shopping there, their full service meat department. I don't buy meat at Safeway or Dead Fred's since they package it down south with carbon monoxide(!) so that it looks nice and red even if it's rotten, and Costco's meat packages are too huge for a single person household.
Don't blame the Rosenbergers --- they were only asking for market rate rent that Ben didn't want to pay.
Let's get a co-op going soon!
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Wish we had a Target
I hope Fred Meyer's closes next. Their customer service has really tanked. I've gone to their corporate website and complained several times. I get a robo-response. That [filtered word] me off more.
Freddie's deli is always understaffed. They rarely have enough cashiers, and the ones they do just aren't really that bright and they have no sense of urgency. It didn't used to be that way.
As for Foodland, I like the store, but their stuff is horribly overpriced. I will buy one or two things there on the way home, but I never take a grocery list there. I will miss them.
So, that leaves Safeway.
Target is just as evil as
Target is just as evil as Wal-Mart. And we don't need any more big box stores--the two we have are enough. A Trader Joe's would totally rock, though.
Or, perhaps, Foodland Superdrug could expand and contain a grocery section like Payless/Pay 'N Save did when it was in the Nugget Mall. Drugstores have really weird business models.
A&P
A&P does seem like it has been runned to the ground. I remember the deli and salad bar and soup was good. They used to have the best fried chicken and potato wedges but I cannot eat it anymore because of too much grease. The soup is not that great but it's edible enough and better than the other deli food. Safeway's soups are better. Not everyone likes filipino food. I don't think they change the oil for deep frying as often as they should. When food cooked in old oil, it makes the food taste bad. The cooking area at the deli doesn't look clean and organized. The customer service needs to be friendlier and helpful. I hope another grocery store will come in there because downtown Juneau and especially Douglas needs a grocery store. It's a long trip to the grocery store for downtown and Douglas people when there won't be a grocery store downtown.
A&P Coffee shop
Not to mention, I would miss the espresso shop at A&P. I often thought that the barristas there have the best customer service.
Trader Joe's
I really want a Trader Joe's as well. I contacted them a couple years ago and they said their business model works only with cheap shipping - which isn't an option here. That is the only way they can sell stuff for so little. I am sorry to say people, we will not get a Trader Joe's here. No one wants one more than I.
Car sharing for grocery shopping
I live downtown and own a car. Two other people who live downtown have a key to my car. They can use it any time they ask. We often go grocery shopping together. Maybe Juneau should have a company that facilitates people renting their cars out to others to do their grocery shopping and other errands.
Best wishes!
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