After two years of delays, the new Wegmans is open. This means that Great Valley has its own supermarket for the first time. It also boosts the chances for the real estate developer to avoid bankruptcy.
It was a frustrating wait for the new supermarket. The building itself was all but finished a year ago. At that point, it was already a year behind schedule, but it couldn’t open. The builder had blocked off all the entrances, as you see in the first photo. The entrance roads were complete at that point except for paving, which the builder didn’t have the money to do. In the photo, you can see the finished supermarket building, ready to open, but essentially being held hostage.
Some kind of back room deal was worked out. The paving was done, the permits issued, and the barriers removed. The supermarket is now open.
The supermarket was finished first because it was the only part of the project that made good economic sense. There is no other supermarket within 2 miles east or west or 5 miles north or south, so this is a spot where a supermarket was eagerly awaited. The other retail stores that are in the plans may eventually be built and opened, but if so, that will just result in the closure of a store somewhere nearby, in an area that already has an excess of retail space. The luxury condos? Maybe in 15 years.
