KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Surging growth in the Northland has people there demanding more amenities. Near the top of their want list is a Trader Joe’s grocery store north of the river.
A social media report suggests the specialty grocery chain may be coming to Metro North mall.
There has been $2 billion in new investment in Clay County alone during the last year. But Trader Joe’s still has only two locations in the metro area, both south of the river.
A Facebook page called ‘Bring Trader Joe’s To Kansas City North’ already has more than 4,500 followers. One recent post claims the specialty chain will be part of the new Metro North redevelopment, but the mall’s developer said there is no deal yet.
Trader Joe’s is known for its organic products and inexpensive wines. The California-based chain has a store in the Ward Parkway shopping center and one in Leawood.
A Clay County development expert told FOX 4 News he believes Metro North would be an ideal location for Trader Joe’s unique charm.
“A lot of times that helps us get a Trader Joe’s attention,” said Jim Hampton, executive director of the Clay County Economic Development Council. “The real work of that is how many rooftops do we have in the area? How many people are within the area? What’s the disposable income? All of those kinds of things. They know from their formulas that they have to have those kinds of numbers or they’re not going to be successful.”
Trader Joe’s is not viewed as large enough to anchor a regional mall like Metro North, but Hampton said it would help attract other tenants to be part of the mall’s $200 million redevelopment project.
Macy’s has committed to remaining at Metro North. Hampton said the mall developer would like to attract another big department store to serve as an anchor for the other end of the mall.