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Wegmans fans await new store near Del.

robin brown
The News Journal
A woman shops at Wegmans in Fairfax, Virginia, in 2011. The supermarket chain plans to open a store off U.S. 202 in Pennsylvania, less than 3 miles from the Delaware line, before Thanksgiving 2015.

The 141 members of the Facebook page "We Want Wegmans in Wilmington!! Delaware, that is!" aren't quite getting their wish, but they have been keeping each other updated on the Wegmans planned nearby in Pennsylvania.

The foodie-fave grocery store is due to start construction shortly on a massive 140,000-square-foot building less than 3 miles north of the state line.

The new location is east of U.S. 202 and south of U.S. 1 in the Painters Crossing area, and is aiming to lure shoppers from northern Delaware.

"I can assure you that once this one opens in Chadds Ford/Glen Mills, I will never set foot in Safeway, Giant, Acme, etc., etc., etc. again," wrote Linda Horton Bacon, who started the Facebook group, in response to a question. "I started this group ... because my husband and I love Wegmans, and we were tired of going to Downingtown and Malvern."

Beyond its grocery inventory, the new Wegmans is expected to have a pub-bistro and outdoor dining area for customers and meeting space for a variety of uses. It is scheduled to open before Thanksgiving 2015.

Wilmington's Amy Watson Bish said she first experienced Wegmans as a kid when her family would visit relatives in upstate New York.

"The meat, produce, cheese and bakery selections are fantastic," Bish said, "and their to-go area is varied. The prices are very reasonable, too.

"I went to the King of Prussia Wegmans for the first time a couple weeks ago and was in heaven. Again, selection great, staff pleasant, and the store is gorgeous. And of course being able to buy beer there is a huge plus. While I would have loved to have had the new one located in Wilmington ... I will gladly drive the 14 miles up 202 to be able to shop at Wegmans."

The shoppers' destination spot likely will lure job-seekers as well: Counting more than a dozen other stores in separate retail space planned as part of its complex, the project over time is expected to create nearly 1,000 new jobs.

Construction crews work at the future site of a Wegmans grocery store at U.S. 1 and U.S. 202, in the Painters Crossing area of Pennsylvania about 3 miles north of the Delaware line.

The project, called Brandywine Mills, will develop slightly more than 33 acres that is now field and woods, next to Applied Card Systems on that company's self-named Applied Card Way.

In addition to the massive Wegmans, the project by the Pennsylvania-based Carlino Development Group will build another 50,000 square feet of retail space, according to the developer's website.

The project has been in the works for several years, due to its needed planning, zoning and variance approvals from Concord and Chadds Ford townships.

The family owned regional grocery chain, headquartered in New York, has more than 80 stores, with 10 more planned, but has yet to snag a Delaware location. Of its 16 Pennsylvania stores, the closest are in Downingtown, Malvern and King of Prussia. It also has seven stores in both Maryland and New Jersey. Its other stores are in Massachusetts, New York and Virginia.

The Barley Mill Plaza development project in Delaware had included a 90,000-square-foot pad targeted for a possible Wegmans grocery store. That was the one part of the plan the community actually liked, but the project did not materialize.

The new Pennsylvania store might be the next best thing.

The area already is home to a 38,000-square-foot Whole Foods, which opened in March 2012.

Like Whole Foods, Wegmans is known for its vast variety of products, extensive prepared food offerings and rare ingredients that inspire customer devotion.

In ranking best grocery stores, Consumer Reports has dubbed Wegmans No. 1, and Forbes has rated it the fourth-best company to work for, according to News Journal files.

Contact robin brown at (302) 324-2856 or rbrown@delawareonline.com. Find her on Facebook and follow her on Twitter @rbrowndelaware.