$25M ShopRite Supermarket Opens in Baltimore’s Howard Park Neighborhood, Brings 250 New Jobs

By Adrian Maties, Associate Editor

A new supermarket is now open in Baltimore. ShopRite of Howard Park is the largest grocery store in the city and the first to be constructed in the Howard Park area since 1999. It is also the first supermarket opened by Klein’s Family Markets in Baltimore City.

ShopRite of Howard Park is located at 4601 Liberty Heights Avenue, between Hillsdale Road and Gwynn Oak Avenue. The 68,000-square-foot full-service supermarket will offer a broad selection of products, from meat and seafood to gluten-free products. It will also house a full-service pharmacy and two community rooms, and, starting this October, it will be the new home of a Q-Care Health Suite, managed by Park West Health Care System, in partnership with nonprofit UpLift Solutions.

Baltimore officials and community leaders have been trying to bring a supermarket to the Howard Park neighborhood since 1999. The area was designated by the USDA as a food desert. Klein’s Family Markets invested $25 million to construct the ShopRite of Howard Park. In a news release, the company said the project will bring 250 new jobs to the community.

UpLift Solutions and the Baltimore Development Corporation also helped with the project. The latter relocated businesses and residents, demolished existing structures, and prepared the site for development. Klein’s Family Markets also worked with the Maryland Transit Administration and the Baltimore City Department of Transportation to design a parking lot that includes a major bus stop at the store’s front entrance to improve food access for the entire community.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, Lt. Governor Anthony Brown, Baltimore Development Corporation President & CEO Brenda McKenzie, representatives of Klein’s Family Markets, and residents of the Howard Park community were present on July 31, at the grand opening of the long-awaited supermarket.

“A key goal of my administration is growing Baltimore City by 10,000 families over the next decade. In order to grow a city, you have to both attract new residents and give those residents already here more reasons to stay. For me that means ensuring that every family, no matter their income or where they live, has access to quality, affordable and nutritious food options,” Mayor Rawlings-Blake said in a press statement. “Right now, too many people in Baltimore lack easy access to groceries. Today has done nothing but strengthen my resolve and deepen my commitment to eliminate the word ‘food desert’ from Baltimore’s vocabulary. This store will be an anchor to community food systems here in Baltimore.”

Photo credits: ShopRite