Willow Glen Resident
News
Liquor license could make or break deal with Fresh & Easy
By Linda Taaffe
A plan to revitalize the Willow Shopping Center at Bird and Minnesota avenues with the addition of a British-owned market and exterior upgrades may hinge on a liquor license.
The strip mall's property owners plan to give the center a facelift that will match the façade of the Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market slated to open at the former Albertsons site by the end of next spring. The market has already negotiated a lease for the site but is waiting for the city to approve a conditional-use permit to allow the sale of alcohol for off-site use. Without the license, the deal will probably not move forward, said representatives from both sides.
"Most likely, if we don't get the liquor license, we won't move into the space," said Schuyler Jackson, regional real estate director for Fresh & Easy. "Liquor is one component, just like the meat [department]. We need to look at it from the marketing side."
Jackson said only one out of the 15 Fresh & Easy stores has opened without a liquor license.
The Willow Glen site, if approved, will have less than 5 percent of its floor space dedicated to alcohol, which would be sold for off-site consumption only. No single bottles or fortified malt liquor would be sold, and the alcohol department would be at the back of the store, said Alex Eagle, project manager with Bergman Corp., which is working on the project with Fresh & Easy.
The application for the liquor license is part of a standard process required under a city ordinance put in place two years ago. If Fresh & Easy had begun its operations within 18 months after Albertsons closed, the market could have taken over Albertsons' liquor license. The license has expired, however, so Fresh & Easy must apply for a new one.
City planner Sanhita Mallick said strong community opposition is one factor that could pursuade the planning commission to deny the liquor license request.
At a neighborhood meeting Nov. 27, city planners asked residents for feedback to gauge the community's response to the application. Planners will bring a recommendation, partly based on resident comments, to the planning commission Dec. 10.
Most at the meeting were more concerned about uncovering details on the British grocery company Tesco, which owns Fresh & Easy. The Willow Glen market is the first targeted to open in Northern California. A Fresh & Easy opened in Southern California last month.
Since the closure of Albertsons, the Willow Glen community has pushed for a more upscale and local grocer. Many community members had hoped that Zanotto's, a family-owned grocer with two other locations in San Jose, would occupy the space, but it was passed up for Fresh & Easy.
When the public learned that Fresh & Easy had negotiated a lease for the space, many residents were concerned about the quality and service level of the unknown market.
Ted Peterson, vice president for the San Diego-based Asset Management Group, which manages the property, said Fresh & Easy is a blend between Trader Joe's and Whole Foods. The market is a full-service grocery store with meat, fish, dairy and bakery departments.
The company is committed to selling organic and fresh foods at low prices, he added.
About 60 percent of the produce it sells is from California, he added. The company's distribution center is in Riverside, but there are plans to open a second center in Northern California.
In Willow Glen, the proposed store will be 10,000 square feet, or about the same size at the Trader Joe's market at the San Jose MarketCenter on Coleman Avenue.
For more information, visit www.freshandeasy.com.
