For the third time in four years, a long-awaited grocery store is going out of business in Palo Alto.
College Terrace Market, which opened in June at 2100 El Camino Real, announced Dec. 30 on its Facebook page that it would be closing after just six months of operation.
“It is with great sadness and regret that we are announcing that College Terrace Market will be closing its doors in the very near future,” store general manager Ron Jensen wrote. “We don’t have an exact date yet, but will make sure to let you know as soon as we have more information.”
Everything in the store is 50 percent off until the lights are turned off for good, Jensen added.
The store touted itself as a neighborhood market that provides high-quality food and the services of a knowledgeable staff to residents and students.
But for some, that all came at a steep cost.
One College Terrace neighborhood resident stated the market’s high prices kept her from shopping there frequently.
“It has been nice to have a market close by again,” Kim Darnell commented about the announcement on the Facebook page. “It’s nice to be able to stop in and pick up a fancy cake or bottle of wine for a party, get some ice cream with the kids, or grab a few items that I need for whatever I want to cook for dinner. Unfortunately, the prices have just been too high to make it a regular place to shop.”
Hillary Gitelman, director of Palo Alto’s Planning and Community Development, said the city is willing to help the property owner find another grocery store and avoid potential fines if the search takes too long.
“We are in the process of reaching out to the developer and building owner to look at what we can do to support grocery retail,” Gitelman said. “Since a restrictive covenant on the property requires the owner to re-tenant a vacant space within six months or face daily financial penalties, we must hold the property owner to their commitment to have an operational grocery store on the premises.”
According to a staff report, the owner could face a $2,000 fine each day College Terrace Market is not replaced starting six months after it shuts down.
In April 2013, Miki’s Farm Fresh Market at Alma Plaza also closed after six months, citing poor sales. Eight years before Miki’s failed, Albertsons also called it quits at the plaza, ostensibly for the same reason. Grocery Outlet, a discount chain, now operates out of the site.
In March 2015, the Fresh Market closed at Edgewood Shopping Center after an almost two-year run. The city started charging the center’s owner, Sand Hill Property Co., $1,000 a day in October that year and in November 2016 it upped the daily fine to $5,000. In all, the city collected more than $700,000 before Sand Hill found a new tenant. This past December, a family that also owns and operates Crystal Springs Produce in San Mateo began subleasing the 2170 W. Bayshore Road site from The Fresh Market, which has seven years left on a 10-year lease. The Market at Edgewood will hold a grand opening celebration starting at 10:45 a.m. on Jan. 10.
