A 61,000-square-foot grocery store project is planned in St. Johns County, and it’s not Publix or Winn-Dixie.
The county is reviewing plans for a store at Veterans Parkway and County Road 210 West, which matches the Harris Teeter footprint.
The location is in north St. Johns County about 3.8 miles southeast of the interchange of Interstate 95 and U.S. 98.
Plans show an 11,000-square-foot retail space adjacent to the grocery and a 5,000-square-foot retail space in the parking lot. There are four outparcels and a 1.12-acre fueling station. The total square footage of the shopping center is 77,000 square feet.
Harris Teeter, based in North Carolina and owned by Kroger Co., also operates Harris Teeter Fuel Centers.
Representatives from Publix and Winn-Dixie said they are not associated with the project.
Jacksonville-based Kimley-Horn is the civil engineer. The land is owned by Helow Properties LTD, the developer of the master-planned Greenbriar community.
It would be the second grocery store of that size being explored in the county.
Another unnamed 61,000-square-foot store that would anchor a shopping center is planned in the county’s SilverLeaf community. Those plans also match Harris Teeter.
The county’s Planning and Zoning Agency recommended approval 5-1 on Nov. 6 for a minor modification to the SilverLeaf planned unit development.
The change would allow the grocery store, an affiliated liquor store and outparcels designed for restaurant tenants to sell alcohol within 275 feet of the Episcopal Church in the Diocese of Florida instead of the required 1,000 feet.
The site is at County Road 16A and SilverLeaf Parkway. Ellen Avery-Smith of Jacksonville-based Rogers Towers represents the project. England-Thims & Miller Inc. of Jacksonville is the civil engineer. The Hutson Co., through White’s Ford Timber LLC, owns the property.
Hutson representatives and Avery-Smith would not confirm whether Harris Teeter is the intended tenant.
Harris Teeter announced Nov. 10 it will open five stores in new markets, including in Jacksonville at the Atlantic North shopping center at northwest Atlantic and Kernan boulevards.
It expects to start construction on the site it is leasing at 11901 Atlantic Blvd. in spring 2026 and will hire 100 to 200 employees. Sleiman Enterprises is the landlord.
The Kroger Co. bought Harris Teeter in 2014. North Carolina grocers W.T. Harris and Willis Teeter co-founded Harris Teeter in 1960 in North Carolina, according to the company’s website.
Harris Teeter is headquartered in Matthews, North Carolina, and employs about 35,000 people. In addition to its retail stores, the company operates grocery, frozen food and perishable distribution centers in Greensboro, North Carolina, and Indian Trail, South Carolina.
The only Harris Teeter in Florida is in Fernandina Beach and was recently permitted for a wine bar. The company previously operated stores in Jacksonville’s Mandarin neighborhood and in Ponte Vedra Beach, which closed in 2004 and 2006, respectively.