Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market CEO Tim Mason and Los Angeles City Councilwoman Jan Perry and other dignitaries gathered Monday in a groundbreaking for a new Fresh & Easy store on East Adams Boulevard in South L.A., the company said.
Earlier this year, Fresh & Easy opened a store in Compton, Calif., confirming its commitment to open in all different types of neighborhoods, including those that have been traditionally underserved. In the Compton store, more than half of the top 20 products sold are fresh fruits and vegetables, several of which are organic.
The South L.A. site will be part of a mixed-use development project at 1011 East Adams Blvd., the company said.
Fresh & Easy currently operates 63 stores across Southern California, Nevada and Arizona, including 11 in Los Angeles County.
A recent independent study prepared for the Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles found residents of the Ninth City Council District spend more than $400 million in annual general merchandise, groceries and restaurants outside of the district.
This data supports the need for greater food access in the neighborhood, a void that Fresh & Easy says it will help fill.
“Fresh & Easy is committed to serving all different types of neighborhoods,” Mason said. “We strongly believe everyone deserves fresh, wholesome food at affordable prices, regardless of where they live. We are excited to open in South LA and bring local, high quality jobs to the neighborhood.”
The mixed-use project on East Adams Boulevard will feature 80 apartments built on three levels above 19,000 square feet of ground-floor retail space fronting on both streets, bringing quality family housing and retail job opportunities to the underserved community.
