Tulsa and Albertson's look to the city's north side

Albertson's is planning to build a new grocery store in north Tulsa. It is the first new supermarket on that side of town in a decade. And it is a major boost to the city's efforts to develop

Tuesday, January 16th 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

Albertson's is planning to build a new grocery store in north Tulsa. It is the first new supermarket on that side of town in a decade. And it is a major boost to the city's efforts to develop the north side.

The city and a major grocery chain are betting that the twenty acres of land set aside for the construction, can be the cornerstone of progress for the north side. Albertsonâ€™s will build a new store at the corner of Pine Street and Peoria Avenue which will open in late 2002.

The development includes a Burger King, and several available nearby buildings. â€œI think it's going to give us some momentum to really begin to see north Tulsa grow,â€ said Tulsa City Councilor Joe Williams.

It's rare that ground is broken on such a big project in north Tulsa, where developers have been afraid to build in the last decade. The Northpointe development was the exception, and helped demonstrate the power of the often ignored north Tulsa economy. â€œWe're very excited that Albertsonâ€™s has stepped forward to say,â€™we want to be a part of redeveloping this area.â€™â€, said Tulsa Mayor Susan Savage.

The city arranged a low interest loan that encouraged Albertsonâ€™s to buy the $1,000,000 piece of property. They're hoping the payoff comes through increased confidence that helps spur development for the north side. â€œIt's going to be a first class project with great economic stimulus for the community it's going to serve,â€ said David Jerry, Alberstonâ€™s division vice president.

Albertonâ€™s says the new store will employ 125 people, with a payroll of about $20,000 per week. This will be a very comparable store to 15th and Lewis,â€ Jerry said. â€œThat's our new prototype store, a plaza store. We try to get a specialty store feel wrapped around a traditional grocery store format. It will be a very comparable location with a fuel center as well,â€ he explained.

The North Peoria Avenue location will be the 10th store for Albertsonâ€™s in Tulsa. It is a venture many will be watching to see if conditions are finally right to rebuild the business district on the north side. The development hinged on the widening of North Peoria Avenue from U-S Highway 75 to the front of the store, which will be complete about the time the store opens.