A Walgreens was built at the corner of Northeast Ward Road and Northeast 162nd Avenue about four years ago. I read at one time there was also going to be built a small grocery mart. Trader Joe’s would be great. What’s up with that corner? Are there any more development plans?
— Kerry Lange and Candace Christensen-Lange, Hockinson
Well, Kerry and Candace, not much is going on at the corner of Ward and 162nd at the moment, but you heard correct.
The property owner, Gramor Development, initially planned to put a full-sized grocery store at that intersection. Those plans were put on hold when development slowed in the area.
The company is waiting for a grocer to express interest in the property before building a store, said Barry Cain, president of Gramor.
“I think that is an area that will warrant a grocery store and will be perfect for one,” he said. “Once growth picks up there, grocers will be interested again.”
In the past, some developers subscribed to a mentality similar to the famously misquoted “Field of Dreams,” line: “If you build it, they will come.”
Moving forward, it will become more rare for businesses to build without having tenants lined up to fill spaces, said retail specialist Deborah Ewing.
“They’re not willing to risk because of the soft market — they won’t build unless they know someone will move in,” she said.
Cain hopes a grocery store will be built behind the Walgreens in the not-so-distant future.
Don’t hold your breath for a Trader Joe’s, though.
Alison Mochizuki, Trader Joe’s spokeswoman, said a new Vancouver location isn’t in the company’s two-year plan.
— Paul Suarez
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