WINDSOR TERRACE — A Walgreens pharmacy that sparked an outcry when it bumped out Windsor Terrace's only full-service grocery is now open on Prospect Avenue — but the promised Key Food slated to open next door won't be in business until at least January 2015, a spokeswoman told DNAinfo New York.
Walgreens opened on Oct. 20 at 589 Prospect Ave., the Kensington BK blog first reported — replacing a Key Food grocery that closed suddenly in July 2012, leaving locals without a place to shop for fresh food.
Meanwhile, the Key Food, whose new owner agreed to share the building after pressure from the community, has little more than concrete walls and metal beams.
In early October, neighbors got word that the grocery would be open by Thanksgiving. But a Key Food spokeswoman said Friday that the owner is now "aiming to open in January 2015."
"They are working hard to ensure this store is perfect when it opens its doors and in the best possible condition to service the community,” Key Food spokeswoman Michele Gissi said Friday.
She did not respond to an inquiry about the source of the construction delays.
Windsor Terrace residents have been desperate for a full-service supermarket since Key Food's 2012 closure.
After neighbors protested plans to replace the neighborhood's biggest supermarket with a Walgreens, the grocery store and the national pharmacy chain came up with a compromise — they would share the building and put their two stores side by side.
At first officials predicted a summer 2013 opening for both stores, but the project was repeatedly delayed.
“People went from being really frustrated and unhappy to acceptance,” said Mary Kay Seery, a staffer for Assemblyman Jim Brennan, who represents the area. “It’s like the stages of grief. It’s remarkable that it’s taken so long…I think it will be very welcome when it comes.”