July 9, 2014

Mayor Emanuel, Governor Quinn and Roundy’s Announce New Location in Lakeside on Chicago’s South Side

New Mariano's Grocery Store Will Add Hundreds of Jobs and Create New Food Opportunities in Area; Investing in Neighborhoods is a Key Component of the Plan for Economic Growth and Jobs

Mayor's Press Office    312.744.3334

Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Governor Pat Quinn, Alderman John Pope and Roundy's, Inc., a leading grocer in the Midwest, today announced a new Mariano's grocery store will be built on the former site of the South Works steel mill, now known as Chicago Lakeside, at the intersection of 87th Street and S. Lake Shore Drive. The new store, the second Mariano's to be announced on the south side, will increase the availability of fresh and healthy foods for residents and add hundreds of jobs to the neighborhood when the store opens, anticipated in 2016. Like other Mariano's locations, which average approximately 400 total employees, Mariano's Lakeside will deliver world-class customer service to the neighborhood.

"Three years ago, Mariano's committed to opening stores across the City of Chicago, and I'm happy to announce that residents of South Chicago will soon benefit from that promise," Mayor Emanuel said. "Today is about a new neighborhood rising, and communities, the City and the private sector coming together to create new jobs and new opportunities for tomorrow."

Mariano's is focused on local and community hiring and will work with the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership as a local hiring partner for its Lakeside store. The Workforce Partnership will play a key role in placing team members in all departments.

"As we work together to address local food deserts, a new Mariano's on Chicago's South Side will also create hundreds of new jobs for our hardworking residents," Governor Quinn said. "The new development will attract other retailers to the South Shore and transform the region. Mariano's is committed to expanding in Chicago neighborhoods and nearby communities that need access to fresh, quality foods and I commend them for their efforts around our state."

Governor Quinn recently committed $5 million in state bond proceeds to help Mariano's build five stores. Four will be in Chicago neighborhoods that lack full-scale grocery stores and the fifth will be at a suburban site still to be determined.

Prior to the opening of Mariano's Lakeside, a job fair will be hosted in the community for local residents to attend and learn about the positions that will be available at Mariano's Lakeside. Additional consideration will be given to local residents to fill many of the project's construction jobs.

"At Mariano's, we seek to be an integral part of the neighborhoods that we serve by bringing jobs, quality products and great service to the community," said Robert A. Mariano, Roundy's Chairman and CEO. "The Lakeside development will help anchor a new community on a historic site, and we are honored to be a part of it."

This is the first retail development announced at the Lakeside development that will serve as an important anchor for the community. Mariano's will anchor a new retail complex of up to 200,000 square feet. Mariano's Lakeside will be 70,000-square-foot full service grocery store that will cover up to five acres, and employ up to 400 full and part-time workers.

"My family was just like many other families that established themselves here on the southeast side of Chicago," said John Pope, 10th Ward Alderman. "We called this part of Chicago home because there were high-paying jobs, strong communities and endless opportunities for us and now is the time to restore those values and bring back all of those possibilities for the new generation of residents on the southeast side."

Over the past four years, Mariano's has created more than 10,500 jobs in the Chicagoland area with over 4,500 in the City of Chicago. By the end of 2014, Mariano's will have opened 29 stores in the Chicago metropolitan area including Ravenswood, Edgewater, Bridgeport and Bucktown.

"I join in welcoming Mariano's to Lakeside. This will help anchor investment along the residential rich corridors that lead directly to the site and provide the southeast side with much-needed job opportunities." said Natashia Holmes, 7th Ward Alderman.

Lakeside Chicago is a 589-acre lakefront property on the South East Side of Chicago that is home to largest piece of undeveloped land in the City of Chicago. The developers, McCaffery Interests and United States Steel Corporation, have deeded nearly 100 acres of lakefront property to the Chicago Park District which will use $100,000 in Coastal Management Program funding from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources to plan the new park.

Parts of the currently vacant site are slated to become green space and are getting fertile mud dredged from the Illinois River to serve as topsoil. The Governor's "Mud to Parks" program, operated by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, has provided 18,900 cubic yards of soil for the site, which adjoins the Calumet River, while improving river navigation downstream.

"This is the first of many great opportunities this development site will bring to the residents of the southeast side of Chicago," said Dan McCaffery, chairman and CEO of McCaffery Interests, Inc. "This is a property that in the past provided many hard working families a sense of pride and gave them the resources they needed to call this area home. Mariano's is just the first step of many that will help nurture that feeling in this community."

Today's announcement builds on efforts to revitalize the area that include City and State efforts to open U.S. Route 41/South Lake Shore Drive, a $64 million project that will improve traffic flow and provide downtown access for residents of the Southeast Side. The state committed $45 million to extend U.S. Route 41 into the property. The new lakefront development is a prime example of the economic development this relocated section of Lake Shore Drive will encourage. The new Lake Shore Drive alignment will make the entire residential, commercial and recreational development more accessible to the public.

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About Roundy's
Roundy's is a leading grocer in the Midwest with nearly $4.0 billion in sales and more than 25,000 employees. Founded in Milwaukee in 1872, Roundy's operates 156 retail grocery stores and 97 pharmacies under the Pick 'n Save, Rainbow, Copps, Metro Market and Mariano's retail banners in Wisconsin, Minnesota and Illinois. Roundy's is committed to helping the communities its stores serve through the Roundy's Foundation. Chartered in 2003, the Roundy's Foundation mission is to support organizations working to relieve hunger and helping families in crisis due to domestic abuse, neglect and other at-risk situations.