Freshgrocer opening now set for April 20

After countless construction problems and months of delays, the troubled Freshgrocer supermarket at 40th and Walnut streets will finally open on April 20, operator Pat Burns said yesterday. The gourmet market -- originally scheduled to open last summer -- has been plagued by a number of construction problems, including, most recently, problems with the concrete and tile floor. Burns said the new date is contingent upon construction and repairs being finished by that point. The most recent problems with the supermarket include bumps and cracks on the floor, a faulty climate control system and an improperly placed conveyor belt designed to transport customers' groceries to their cars. "I would say it's a 95 percent fixed date," Burns said. But he added that one problem in the store has still not been completely sorted out. "We're still trying to solve some of the floor issues," he said. "They're not solved yet but we're still going to open." Penn Executive Vice President John Fry said the floor issues have not been resolved because Freshgrocer officials continue to reject the University's solutions. He declined to give details of the proposed solution. "They keep raising issues and we keep dealing with them, but my patience is wearing thin," Fry said. "We're very anxious to get the store open, but they don't seem to want to get the store open." Fry added that the University had brought a "third party" construction group into the negotiations and that the group proposed solutions for the floor that Freshgrocer officials subsequently rejected. Burns will run the supermarket once it is open, but Penn holds responsibility for constructing the facility. "The colored concrete floors are not done according to specifications," Burns said. "We need to work out details to get it done correctly. [University officials] have assured me that they'd stand behind it." Burns said that when the market opens on April 20, the planned indoor and outdoor cafe will also open for business. The much-anticipated supermarket pushed back its opening date from last summer to January 10 because of labor and material shortages. When January 10 passed, Freshgrocer officials settled on March 1 for the grand opening and later on April 1. Barely a week before April 1, Burns postponed The Freshgrocer opening indefinitely, citing his many complaints over the store's construction. The University has been in negotiations with Burns ever since, trying to work out a compromise in order to open the market before the end of the school year. Fry emphasized that negotiations have not broken down, saying that he spoke with Freshgrocer officials twice last night. "The ball is in their court," Fry said.

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