Hyde Park to get Whole Foods
By SAM CHOLKE
Staff Writer

Hyde Parkers who have long said they deserve a Whole Foods will get their wish. The Austin-based grocer announced May 4 that it signed a lease with Antheus Capital to open its seventh Chicago store on the southwest corner of South Lake Park Avenue and East Hyde Park Boulevard.

“We are overjoyed to finally bring these high quality foods to the Hyde Park neighborhood,” said Michael Bashaw, Whole Foods Midwest regional president, in a prepared statement.

The store, which specializes in natural and organic foods, will open a 30,000-square-foot location in the redeveloped Village shopping center in the summer of 2014. It is the first major retailer to officially sign on to $125 million project.

The development, announced in July 2008, will include a residential high rise at South Harper Avenue and a mid-rise along South Lake Park Avenue. The first floor will include retail outlets along Lake Park Avenue, Hyde Park Boulevard and Harper Avenue, according to the most recent plans.

One current tenant, the Village grocery store, has a lease through 2013 and a representative for Antheus said last week it would be honored. The project will be built in two phases, the mid-rise constructed while the Village continues to operate. The store’s beverage department, which extends into an adjoining building, would have to be relocated during construction. The grocery store and the neighboring businesses in the shopping center would be demolished before phase two begins.

The planning for the new development continues to progress slowly, said Peter Cassel, director of community development for Antheus, in a phone interview last week. He said work would not begin during the summer construction season and the architect, Studio Gang Architects, continue to finalize plans before applying for building permits.

Many expected Whole Foods would locate within the redeveloped Harper Court shopping center on 53rd Street, and the Sun-Times reported last November that the developers were courting the grocer. The speculation reignited a desire to see the upscale grocer locate on the South Side.

When developers announced an Aldi for the corner of East 47th Street and South Cottage Grove Avenue, several residents complained that they deserved more “highbrow” retail, such as Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s.

They now get their wish.

When Whole Foods opens, it will be third major grocer to open along a mile-and-a-half stretch of South Lake Park Avenue in the last five years, joining Treasure Island and Michael’s Fresh Market.

Representatives from Antheus were not available to comment on May 4.