Groundbreaking Date for Fort Bragg Grocery Outlet Slips

Construction now targeted to begin in May

Grocery Outlet currently has stores in Ukiah and Willits. (Photo by Michael Cox)

Construction of a new Grocery Outlet on South Franklin Street in Fort Bragg has been pushed back to May, council member Lindy Peters said.

“I know a lot of people are concerned about grocery outlet,” Peters said at the City Council meeting Monday. “I understand they have now selected a contractor that they are moving forward with their business license application, and they hope to break ground in May.”

Construction of the store on the site of the old Mendocino County Social Services building has been held up for more than four years. Originally proposed in 2019, the project was delayed after local business group Fort Bragg Local Business Matters challenged a mitigated negative declaration under the California Environmental Quality Act in July 2021.

After three and a half years of legal battles, San Francisco Superior Court Judge Christine Van Aken in February dismissed a lawsuit brought by Fort Bragg Local Business Matters against the California Coastal Commission, the city of Fort Bragg and Best Development Group. The suit claimed the commission failed to follow its own rules on community impact, citing traffic concerns and the loss of views.

According to documents filed with the commission, the new store will be on the far north side of the site. When it opens, the store will employ 25 full-time employees and 10 part-time employees.

The owners plan to include a 53-space parking lot with parking for recreational vehicles, electric vehicles and priority spots for clean-air vehicles. Other improvements include internal walkways and crosswalks, perimeter sidewalks, utility infrastructure and stormwater drainage.

In addition to the 16,157-square-foot store, the site will include 19,265 square feet of landscaping that will leave the site permeable to stormwater.