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By MaryHelen Swanson
 Representatives of Jerry’s Enterprises, Inc. of Edina, Minnesota along with representatives of the city of North Branch, Chisago County, North Branch Chamber, Solomon Real Estate Group, Amcon, and Park Midwest gathered for a groundbreaking ceremony for the 53,000 square foot Jerry’s County Market last Thursday, July 17.
Pictured is a rendition of what the new store will look like.
On hand was Jeff Bradley, a 24-year employee of Jerry’s, who will be the new store’s manager. Bradley began working for the company as a bagger.
Jerry’s, an independent grocery store operator based in Edina, will lease the space from Solomon Real Estate Group in the new North Branch Market Place development. Jerry’s Enterprises owns about 25 grocery stores that operate under Cub Foods, Jerry’s Foods, and Save-a-Lot names.
“Jerry’s plans to emulate the format it used last year in Hudson, Wisc., at another County Market store,” said Tom Willett, North Branch Economic Development director. That prototype store plays up fresh and organic items with a roadside farmer’s market theme that incorporates farm-style images in its signage and decor.
The North Branch Market Place development includes a previously announced Shopko retail store that is nearing completion. The scheduled opening date for the Shopko store is mid-October.
The realignment of Flink Avenue from Tanger Drive to Falcon Avenue was completed in early July. The new traffic signals have also been installed and traffic is using the new roadway.
Also under construction is a 20,000-square-foot strip mall. This building will be immediately east of Jerry’s County Market. A portion of the building has been pre-leased to three tenants: Dunn Bros Coffee, Papa Murphy’s and Fantastic Sam’s. Ten additional suites are available for lease.
If you have driven by the area, you will also see a new Holiday station under construction and an Arby’s is also planned. This will leave three pads still available for development.
The new retail center is at the northwest quadrant of I-35 and State Highway 95.
The design of the new grocery store, scheduled to open in February 2009, features a 44-foot clock tower. Windows and skylights and a glassed-in atrium will provide natural light to the interior.
“What we are striving for is a real community-focused store with a farmer’s market type of feel,” said Bradley. “And, it will be a very fun place to shop.” According to Bradley, the store will hire locally, providing approximately 100 new jobs for the area, approximately 25 percent full-time.
A large variety of convenience items will be featured in the deli and their in-store bakery will be stocked with a large assortment of freshly-made products. The store will include a customer service center, a sit-down area for coffee and snacks, a bank and a pharmacy for one-stop shopping.
Jerry’s also operates County Markets in Hudson and Wausau, Wisc., as well as 14 Cub Foods stores in the Twin Cities, Jerry’s Foods stores in Edina and Eden Prairie, Minn. and Sanibel, Fla, and Save-A-Lot food stores in Wisconsin, Florida, and Arizona.
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