A local health centre is seeking to sign a 10- to 20-year lease on the old Loeb building on Booth Street, in an attempt to bring back a grocery store to the Dalhousie neighbourhood after establishing that $20 million is being spent on food in other communities.
Following the closure of the old store in November 2006, residents were forced to purchase their groceries from more distant locations such as Hartman’s at the corner of Somerset and Bank.
In late February, the board of the Somerset West Community Health Centre approved a project to return a local grocery store to the area and is now ready to formulate a business plan.
“The board of the centre is talking to business partners at the moment,” said Gene Williams, director of health promotion at the community centre.
No firm decisions have been made yet, but Williams said the centre is looking for a long-term tenant for the Booth Street building.
Williams said he couldn’t comment on the names of any potential partners but he revealed that three businesses are interested. The next meeting between the board and the business partners is scheduled to take place in four to six weeks.
“The owners of the building, Bascelli Construction Inc., gave us a tour and we talked about the cost to retrofit the building,” said Williams.
He added that it was too early to comment on how much the project would cost.
“We want to show that the project is financially viable. After that we can start to figure out the business plan.”
Earlier this year, the centre completed a study of food choices made by people in the community. The survey carried out on Dalhousie residents showed that those on fixed incomes, such as single parents and pensioners, suffered most from the lack of stores located within a walking distance from where they live. .
“It is difficult, especially for elderly people to take two buses to get to Hartman’s,” explained Williams.
Heather Hossie, who conducted the study explained that the figures used for the financial assessment were based on 2001 census data and therefore she couldn’t be sure about the potential profit until May 1 when more updated statistics will be released.
A study comparing supply and demand was used to determine the $20-million potential loss of revenue.
The old Loeb store seemed ideal from the start. “The building is centrally located and of an optimum space, between 10,000 and 12,000 square feet,” said Williams.
Since the new grocery store would only take a maximum space of 5,000 to 6,000 square feet, Hossie said the centre is considering a number of options to make use of the extra space.
“We could introduce a bakery or a butcher but the community needs the space, too.”
The centre wants to introduce locally grown products and organic food, hoping to attract customers from neighbouring communities in the surrounding area.