Will Street Co-op announced Monday it is planning to open a new location on the north side at the current site of Pierce’s Northside Market on Sherman Avenue.
The co-op has not signed a lease on the site and the plans are not finalized, but co-op owners approved pursuing a third retail site in August 2014.
The end date on Pierce’s lease has not been announced, but it will likely be early this summer, officials said. An opening date for the possible Willy Street Co-op location is not yet set.
If a deal is reached, the co-op would hope to open as soon as possible, co-op Communications Director Brendon Smith said in a release.
The Northside Planning Council learned that the lease was ending in September when it appeared no other grocer was interested in the site.
The group met with community leaders and alders to explore the possibility of opening a grocery cooperative, according to the release. NPC officials approached the co-op in October about opening a north side location.
“This location would be conveniently located for some of our owners, and it has the features that we would require for a store — it’s in a residential neighborhood, it’s accessible by foot, by bike, bus or car, and there’s a need for a grocery store in the area,” Smith said.
