ATLANTA — The Vine City Walmart on MLK. Jr. Dr. NW, as of Tuesday night, remains boarded up. However, there's a new glimpse of hope, with a large sign that reads "Walmart Neighborhood Market, Coming Soon."
The Historic Westside Village is getting its Walmart back after the original one was set on fire twice in 2022. The latest incident, in December, caused the store to close. Now, a new one is set to open up in May 2024.
Allie Love, who lives steps away, says she is counting down until that moment.
"When they have the grand opening, we'll be the first ones in here," she said.
Love does not drive, and says the last eight months have been challenging for her.
"It's like being in no man's land without the Walmart because we have to walk all the way to Cascade, and that's far," she explained.
Atlanta councilmember Byron Amos hosted a meeting with Walmart executives Tuesday night, where residents of his district had the opportunity to get their questions addressed.
In the meeting, Walmart executives say the new store will be a 75,000 square foot neighborhood market.
They add that you can expect:
- More produce, due to there being a larger space
- A pharmacy with consultation windows and vaccinations
- A full-service deli counter
- A money services counter
- A larger pick-up area for deliveries and pick-up orders
As for safety, there will be more lighting and Atlanta Police cameras.
Mayor Andre Dickens, who was in attendance, says there will also be an Atlanta police substation.
"It gives us an optical presence. If you're thinking you’re going to go to this Walmart and do some shoplifting, you see the APD logo, and you’ll say not today," he explained.
Dickens added that the substation will also allow officers to have a space for meetings, to charge body cameras, and other equipment.
"Because the Zone One precinct is so far away, if you're an officer and you've made an arrest or you've written a ticket and your body camera has to be charged, you have to go all the way back to the precinct and then come all the way back, so that takes you off of your beat for thirty minutes or so," he added.
Walmart also says they plan on hiring 130 associates with a starting pay of $14 an hour for those without experience.
Executives say that when the store shut down after the fire in December, many associates were transferred to other Walmart locations.
Several of them will be moved back to this store.
"We’ll be working to get those associates to come back to this location as I know it’s very important to them as well," one of the executives elaborated.
Days after the second fire at the Vine City Walmart last year, there was a fire set inside the Walmart on Howell Mill Road.
Officials say that store is closed indefinitely.
On Tuesday, Mayor Dickens says they had to pick between one location to keep open and chose Vine City because he says there are fewer grocery store and pharmacy options in that location.
"When we got the news that Walmart was going to consider closing this store, that meant not only a store, it meant also a pharmacy... and it meant then a food desert," he said. "People around here [Vine City] are driving and going long distances to get groceries."
Dickens says that 8 years ago, about 54% of people in the city lived within half a mile from fresh food. He says now that number is around 75%.