Ridley’s issued permit for 4,000 square-foot commercial building at location of old store

The empty lot where the old Ridley’s grocery store stood in downtown Weiser has been bustling of late with construction activity.
 Some of the cement foundation of the old grocery store was removed, along with asphalt on part of the parking lot, in preparation for a planned retail development on a portion of the property.
 Even the Ridley’s sign that had stood in the northwest corner of the parking lot for many years was removed on Friday.
 Ridley’s has filed building plans with the city and received approval to construct a 4,000 square-foot commercial building at the northwest corner of the property that can be divided into two or three spaces. Retail or restaurant space from 1,300 square feet to 4,000 square feet can be leased.    
 City officials said planned tenants in the commercial building space include a national pizza chain and a wireless retail company, but that could not be confirmed through Ridley’s or the leasing agent, Colliers International.
 The retail space will have plenty of shared parking and occupy only a small part of the 2-acre site. There have been no additional plans submitted to the city indicating what will be developed on the rest of the property, which also is owned by Ridley’s.
 Across town, Ridley’s Family Markets is finishing the new 60,000 square foot store on 6th Street and there are tentative plans for a soft-opening in late August.
 In addition to a larger grocery selection, the store will include a hardware store, a large deli with seating and a branch of Icon Credit Union. It will also employ more workers than the old store.
 Ridley’s was forced to close and then demolish the downtown grocery store following the collapse of the roof during the winter of 2017, also known by Weiser residents as Snowmaggedon.
 The roof collapsed on the store from a heavy snow load, along with numerous other buildings around town. The old store was demolished in August of 2018 and the lot has been vacant since.
 Two weeks after the building disaster, Ridley’s opened a temporary grocery store in a smaller location in the old King’s building, where it continues to operate. The pharmacy operations relocated to the old Park-Vu pharmacy store at East Third Street and Liberty Street as a temporary location.
 Ridley’s purchased six acres of vacant property next to Bi-Mart on East Sixth Street for the new store. At Ridley’s request the city council rezoned the property for a grocery store. The company held a public groundbreaking for the new store in late August of 2018.