ATHENS — Horace Greeley proclaimed, “Go west, young man.”
And now, a regional grocery store chain has apparently been listening to Greeley as well as residents on the west side of Athens.
The Athens City Council approved an economic development project agreement Monday with Food City for a store on Elm Street, meeting a demand expressed by residents on that side of the city.
Mayor Ronnie Marks said the eastern side of Athens, which has the most population and access to major thoroughfares like U.S. 31 and I-65, sees the majority of new retail growth.
Residents in western Athens have asked about retail opportunities in their part of the city.
“This project presented us with the opportunity to address a need in that part of our city and grow our sales tax base,” Marks said. “More than 40 percent of our city budget is from sales tax so growing our sales tax base is a priority. We have to grow it in order to hire more responders, buy more garbage trucks, do paving projects, improve outdoor recreation and other services.”
Food City said the project will create approximately 200 jobs and include an investment of more than $19 million. The project is anticipated to generate $23 million in annual taxable sales.
A council-approved incentive plan states the city will collect annual sales tax generated by the store and reimburse it annually for 10 years or until $2.4 million is paid.
The store will be at Elm Street and Lucas Ferry Road. The project will include street improvements in that area.
K-VA-T Food Stores, the corporate banner for the Food City supermarket chain, is an acronym for its original service area of Kentucky, Virginia and Tennessee. The privately held, family-owned company has grown over the years by expansion including five stories under construction in Huntsville.
The Food City banner dates back to 1918, with a store in Greeneville, Tenn. Today, the company spans five states, operating 150 retail outlets throughout southeast Kentucky, southwest Virginia, east Tennessee, north Georgia and Alabama.
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