Pryor Works To Bring Locally Grown Grocery Store To Downtown

There are plans to bring a new grocery store to downtown Pryor that would feature locally-grown produce. The mayor said it represents a major investment in the community.

In Pryor, there's a renewed interest in revitalizing a once-vibrant downtown.

"I would look at other downtowns and think why can't we thrive like that,” said Jennie LaFave.

She runs Pryor Main Street, a nonprofit dedicated to making downtown a destination for the entire city.

"Pryor raises the brightest and we want to be able to retain them and quality of life is a huge piece of that. And so having a downtown where people want to spend time is a huge piece of quality of life," said LaFave.

That's why she's excited about the city's announcement to bring a new grocery store to downtown.

“It's going to be sitting back behind me there, facing out on main street," said Mayor Larry Lees.

Mayor Lees said a company called Oklahoma Grocery Access Alliance wants to bring fresh and healthy food to town.

The mayor said the two buildings that sit on the corner of Graham Avenue and Rowe Street will be torn down to make way for the new grocery store.

Mayor Lees said the company also plans to build local hydroponic growing facilities to stock the new store, along with other retail and residential development in the area, bringing an estimated 300 jobs to Pryor.

Mayor Lees said the company will invest about $400 million into this project over the next five years.

He said groundbreaking should happen this year, but the opening date is still up in the air.

“What they have told us is that they are not going to be on a die hard schedule to get it built out as soon as they possibly can. They're going to take time for design and take time to go through all those processes and do it the right way," said Lees.