Boycott HEB sign on Huebner? (San Antonio, Austin: home, neighborhoods, purchase)

[scuba steve]

Where is Alon? There's an enormous HEB at Blanco and SR 1604. Surely that one won't close?

[banker]

Originally Posted by scuba steve

Where is Alon? There's an enormous HEB at Blanco and SR 1604. Surely that one won't close?

No. The HEB at Blanco/1604 just completed a huge renovation/expansion turning it into one of the largest HEB Plus stores in town. Alon Center is at the southwest corner of Wurzbach Parkway and Northwest Military Highway. There are three older HEB's in the general vicinity to the new Alon Center store: West/Blanco (now very run down), Lockhill-Selma/Northwest Military (also run down) and Huebner/Northwest Military (a converted Albertson's in a still nice shopping center.

When I lived in the area (in Churchill Forest at Blanco/Wurzbach Parkway) we had hoped the Blanco/West store would be renovated as it is very busy but in very poor condition. After Katrina and many of those apartments turned into section 8 housing the situation got much worse and we quit shopping at that store. Until we decided to move - the thought of a new HEB not nearly as big as the new Plus stores was very appealing. The Alon Center store will be about the same size as the Blanco/West store but much more upscale with some Central Market features. The question has and remains which stores will HEB keep/renovate/close after the new Alon Center Store opens. With the new community going in adjacent ot the Alon Center there will be more families so it might be that HEB could keep all the stores. But I doubt it. It would be nice if they kept all the stores but took the advantage of additional capacity to alternately renovate the older stores.

[banker]

I also wonder what will happen to the HEB at Evans/281 once the new store opens. Obviously the old one will close...but what will happen to that location? That is a big store to fill.

[hello13685]

Originally Posted by wCat

Boycotting a store because it's going to move??? That's a good tactic to keep them in the neighborhood!

Exactly. Not to say I'm surprised of course...

[cheermomof4girls]

Originally Posted by banker

I also wonder what will happen to the HEB at Evans/281 once the new store opens. Obviously the old one will close...but what will happen to that location? That is a big store to fill.

You know, I never thought about that. That's a good question. Now I am curious.

[smuboy86]

When the closed the old Austin Highway HEB for the new one they built across the street the old facility was chopped up to make small store space. An anna's linens, AT&T store, Fantastic Sam's and some other small shops went in there.

[Love2begreen]

The color is called Colorado Rust, and hopefully, when the plan is complete, it will appeal to more of us.

[banker]

Originally Posted by Love2begreen

The color is called Colorado Rust, and hopefully, when the plan is complete, it will appeal to more of us.

Are you talking about the shopping center where the old Michael's was?

[CelesteDF]

Originally Posted by sapphire

That one may be because of the Presa St. HEB closing--the downtowners are upset about that one. The nearest one will be the new one at McCreless IIRC.

Originally Posted by ryneone

Those people are stupid as the company is offering to bus them from the other location. How many other company's would do that?

There have been no concrete agreements or plans to provide transportation for local South Presa residents to get to the new grocery store - just a lot of public relations talk. Many of the residents of that neighborhood are low income senior citizens who will have no way to get to the store now, unless HEB follows through with their PR offer. I would hope that people around the city do demonstrate they care and are paying attention to this issue now that the TV cameras have moved on.

[sapphire]

Celeste: I do hope that HEB provides transportation to their new store. I think that would be an amazing gesture of goodwill for them. I do understand that the residents have a valid concern regarding "their" store closing, and I feel for them. I think what bothers outsiders looking in is that they come across as if to say that HEB "owes" them, or that it's something that HEB HAS to do, when clearly they don't. But that has been argued in another thread.