You asked, we answer: What is going on with the Aldi headed to Bluffton?
Months after a discount grocery chain appealed to the Beaufort County Design Review Board to make changes to a Bluffton store space to house a new location, progress seems to have stalled.
Aldi appealed to the county’s design review board in June to make changes to the exterior of the building that anchors the shopping center at U.S. 278 and Burnt Church Road.
As of Wednesday afternoon, the county had not heard back from the company since its proposal, according to Eric Greenway, the county’s community development director.
“As far as we know, they still plan to come,” Greenway said. “I’m sure it’s just a delay in their construction schedule.”
When asked for a construction and opening timeline Tuesday, Shaun O’Keefe, Aldi’s Jefferson Division vice president, said in an email, “At this time, it is still too early to confirm any other details of the store you are inquiring about. We will be sure to be in touch as soon as information becomes available.”
The German-based company swooped in to apply for the store space after plans for a Fresh Market at the location fell through in May when Fresh Market filed a lawsuit against Jaz Development.
Fresh Market’s suit alleged that Jaz Development threatened to evict the store. The suit said the developer claimed Fresh Market had not been paying rent or fulfilling the conditions of its lease. Fresh Market said the developer had not been paying an agreed-upon tenant improvement allowance and asked that a judge to declare the developer to be in default of the lease.
An attempt to reach Jaz Development Wednesday was not successful.
If Aldi opens in the shopping center, it would share the area with Hobby Lobby, PGA Superstore, First Watch and Aspen Dental.
This story was originally published December 20, 2018 at 8:09 AM.
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