It looks like a Whole Foods in Jersey City might finally become a reality. Though the original deal died back in 2017 when Whole Foods had to pull out because the proposed location had site contamination, sources claim a new deal at a new site is back on the table.
At the time the 2017 deal died, representatives for Whole Foods remained super hopeful that eventually, it might come to fruition. And now it appears it may be happening.
View this post on Instagram
“We remain as committed as ever to bringing the highest-quality natural and organic foods to Jersey City,” Ted Kwong, Whole Foods Northeast Regional PR Coordinator said at the time to Jersey Digs.
A year and a half later, it seems like that hope is now restored. Jersey Digs now reports there is “credible buzz” surrounding the rumor that Whole Foods is trying to open a store near the Grove Street PATH Station. One such credible source seems to be Co-Star News, which reported back in February that Mack-Cali Realty Corp. was concentrating on negotiating leases “with potential clients like Amazon’s Whole Foods.” Michael DeMarco, chief executive of Mack-Cali, confirmed the lease negotiations to Co-Star. The news was also reported on Pix11’s Monday night 10PM news cast.
“We’re literally at the one-foot line,” DeMarco said of the current negotiations. “It’s two deals. It’s a store and a lease for office space for [Whole Food’s] northeast headquarters.”
A source on the Whole Foods side shared with Hoboken Girl, “There’s no official news yet. That’s all I can say.” INteresting.
This is big news, if true, for Jersey City and the local cities surrounding it. That includes Weehawken, whose own Whole Foods 365 deal is currently in undetermined territory. Ground broke on the project back in 2017 and the Weehawken Whole Foods 365 was set to be the Whole Food’s very first Hudson County outpost. But then Whole Foods put a wrench in things in January 2019 when it announced they would be dropping all Whole Foods 365 outposts.
The massive grocery chain announced that while it would no longer be expanding the 365 brand concept, the existing 12 outposts would stay open. But many have wondered: Where does that leave Weehawken’s store?
The Weehawken 365 is still undergoing construction and it’s not yet clear what Whole Foods plans to do with it. Will it open and be the thirteenth 365 outpost in the country? Or will it become something else altogether?
To complicate matters, Hoboken’s own Gogi Grill announced earlier in 2019 that they’re opening a new location inside Weehawken’s upcoming Whole Foods location. So is it happening or no? The fate of the Weehawken Whole Foods is still pretty unclear.
Sounds like Hudson County has a pretty tenuous relationship with Whole Foods.
But nevertheless, the Jersey City location could very well be the little Whole Foods that could. {Even if the fate of Weehawken’s own WF is unknown.}
After all, Mack-Cali already owns a number of buildings right on the waterfront in Exchange Place. Among them is the Harborside Terminal Complex, which — suspiciously enough — is currently undergoing construction. The current state of Harborside has many Jersey Citians thinking it’s the target space for Whole Foods’ eventual corporate offices. But it’s not the only location that’s a contender.
Mack-Cali also owns property at Harborside 4A at 286 Washington Street. While nothing has been officially confirmed, Jersey Digs says that sources have indicated that Harborside 4A will be the new Whole Foods space. As it stands now, two of the retail spaces are vacant; a Five Guys outpost is the only remaining business that currently stands in the way of WF.
Should Five Guys relocate — which seems very plausible, given that a construction permit at Mack-Cali property for a “quick-serve restaurant,” according to Jersey Digs, at 101 Hudson Street just went up — Whole Foods would have three ground-level retail storefronts to work with.
And what’s more {as if we needed more evidence!}, Whole Foods has already listed Jersey City as one of its upcoming project sites on its website. Weehawken is also listed under the “Stores in Development” tab. If that’s not proof, we don’t know what is!
All that being said, no official statements have been made from either Whole Foods or Mack-Cali.
Have any news tips? Email hello@hobokengirl.com to let us know — we appreciate it.
Have you joined our Facebook group yet? Request here to gain access to even more local tips, and connect with fellow Hudson County residents.
