Whole Foods is planning to open one of its 365 markets in Temescal as part of a new development being built at 5110 Telegraph Ave. (at 51st Street).
The grocery giant announced on Feb. 8 that it had a signed a lease for the Oakland store but there is no opening date as yet.
The six-story development is set to have 204 apartments above 34,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space, including 28,000 square feet for the 365 store. A “greenbelt pedestrian connection” through the development will connect Frog Park and the Temescal neighborhood, according to Socket Site, and the building will feature a one-acre urban farm to be run by Top Leaf Farms. (The empty lot is currently being used to grow plants and produce.)
The 365 by Whole Foods Markets are positioned as offering a “quality-meets-value shopping experience,” and are built around the store’s line of 365 own-brand products. They are seen as being less costly than the regular Whole Foods stores.
According to Whole Foods, the 365 shops feature “a curated mix of products that adhere to the Whole Foods Market’s industry-leading standards in a shopping environment that’s enjoyable and convenient.”
The first 365 store opened in May 2016 in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles, followed by two more in Bellevue, Washington, and Lake Oswego, Oregon, and more are being rolled out. The Temescal announcement included the news that New York would be getting its first 365 store, in Brooklyn, and that one in Cedar Park, Texas would open April 26.
Whole Foods has five traditional stories in the East Bay: one in Oakland, two in Berkeley, one in Walnut Creek and one in Lafayette. The Temescal area does not have a large grocery store.
