by Michele Newbern Gillis
Staff Writer
The new Winn-Dixie Grocery Store in Ponte Vedra Square shopping center has been open for about a month and has been a win-win situation all-around.
“It has been a plus, not only for the center, but for the entire area,” said Frank Reinstine Jr., a commercial leasing manger with Demetree Brothers,, who leases the center. “Winn-Dixie realized that the center was in a really good location and came to the conclusion that they needed to reopen the store and make it better than before. It is a broad statement by the Winn-Dixie. They have invested a lot of time and money in renovating the store. It is win-win situation and has helped up as far as repositioning the center. It was team effort between Demetree Brothers and Winn-Dixie to get the center ready for the re-opening.”
One of the tenants in the shopping center is Ponte Vedra Beach Realty.
As a professional office, they were not really affected by the closing of the store a few years ago, but are happy that it has re-opened.
“I think it’s been very positive since they opened,” said George Spohrer, co-owner of Ponte Vedra Beach Realty. “Certainly traffic is up. It’s probably particularly important to the retail businesses here. The professional offices such as ours probably benefit a little bit less because we get terrific traffic from the restaurants. Even when the Winn-Dixie was closed our business our was very good.”
When the Winn-Dixie closed three years ago, the shopping center as a whole was not affected.
“We were very fortunate,” said Reinstine. “The shopping center is centrally located and in a great location. Even when the Winn-Dixie closed we had one vacancy, but it was quickly leased up.”
Some of the retail businesses in the shopping center suffered a little and one closed due to the loss of foot traffic.
“There was an ice cream and video store here and I think its closing was a direct result of the Winn-Dixie closing,” said Spohrer.