A Cleveland grocery store has plans to close down and reopen elsewhere.
News 5 has learned Dave’s Market wants to close its East 33rd and Payne Avenue location in Asiatown and move it to a new property at E. 59th and Euclid Avenue, part of the new Link 59 development. It's about a mile and a half away.
At a recent community meeting, Dave's President Dan Saltzman said they're hoping for $1.8 million in tax credits from the city and they'd like it approved soon. Saltzman is hoping to get the money earmarked before city elections take place later this year.
If approved, the new location will be more than twice as large and will replace a small an aging store that has outdated equipment and a parking lot that forces shoppers to cross a street to access.
The new space is expected to include a bank branch, coffee shop, drive-thru pharmacy, a liquor store and a test kitchen to teach people in the neighborhood how to cook healthy foods.
But some people who live near the current location are worried about losing their neighborhood grocery store.
“You just can’t uproot and move,” Ward 7 Councilman T.J. Dow said. "At the end of the day, Dave’s has been here a long time. They’ve been a good community partner. Folks are used to coming here from the neighborhood.”
Councilman Dow said he is now getting feedback from some neighbors.
Dave’s Market will continue to own the existing building even after the move and there are no immediate plans for anything else to fill that space. If the move happens, some neighbors in Asiatown hope the space will turn into some sort of community center.
