LAKEVIEW — Step aside, Mariano's: There's another new grocery store in town.
As east Lakeview customers revel in the upscale kiosks in the new Broadway Mariano's that opened in August, those on the west side of the neighborhood have been awaiting a similarly titanic grocery store.
Whole Foods broke ground on its second-largest location in Chicago in November 2015, and after 1 year and 4 months of construction, it will open at 3201 N. Ashland Ave. in March.
It took months and several revisions for neighbors to approve the grocery market, with developers adding a garden walk on Melrose Street and a more attractive street-level facade to the plans.
The 75,000-square-foot store will replace the Whole Foods one block north at 3300 N. Ashland Ave.
Whole Foods added its signs to the building in recent weeks, along with a banner announcing a grand opening set for March 22.
Check out photos of construction progress over the past year: