April opening planned for Chuck’s Produce & Artisan Foods
A produce and natural foods market will soon fill the former Joe’s sporting goods store space in Vancouver, closed by the bankrupt retailer in May.
The replacement, Chuck’s Produce & Artisan Foods, is expected to open in April, said Ron Baier, who will manage the new store with Mike Livermore of Vancouver. The two were hired by a group of Clark County investors who apparently purchased the store real estate at 13215 S.E. Mill Plain Blvd. for an undisclosed amount in June. Clark County records do not disclose a sale price. Meanwhile, the property’s 2009 assessed value is $5.1 million, county records show.
Salem, Ore.-based general contractor Colson & Colson will remodel the building’s interior, Baier said.
“The concept is somewhere between Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods,” Baier said.
The new store will be roughly 24 blocks east of Vancouver’s only Trader Joe’s at Mill Plain and Chkalov Drive and roughly 24 blocks west of Vancouver’s only Whole Foods Market, at Mill Plain and Southeast 160th Avenue.
“We’ll be buying as much local produce as we can when it’s in season. We want to focus on food, not paper and cleaning products,” Baier said.
He said Chuck’s Produce would employ approximately 80 people in 37,000 square feet of the 70,000-square-foot former Joe’s building. The remaining space will be reserved for store expansion or lease to another tenant.
“We’re looking at both options,” Livermore said.
Baier said store plans call for a large produce section at the front of the store, along with shelving for packaged specialty foods, a deli with seating for between 30 and 40 patrons, a bakery and a butcher shop that will carry locally produced meats.
A country market theme is planned for the store’s interior decor.
“That might include a brand-new shiny old pickup” as part of the produce display, Baier said.
The store will also feature polished cement flooring and eight checkout stands.
Store developers hope to capture market share among a growing population of health-conscious food shoppers, Baier said.
Although Chuck’s Produce will be half the size of its nearby full-service grocery competitors, WinCo Foods and Safeway, Baier expects the new store to become a popular destination.
“This is the first of what we hope will eventually be several stores,” he said.
So who’s Chuck?
Baier said one of the investors has the name Chuck, but would not disclose more.
