Wegmans to Anchor Pa. Mixed-use Development

ROCHESTER, N.Y. -- Wegmans Food Markets here has signed an agreement with King of Prussia, Pa.-based real estate investment and development company O'Neill Properties Group to anchor Worthington, an almost 1.6 million square-foot high-end mixed-use community in the Philadelphia Main Line suburb of Malvern, Pa.

The supermarket operator will occupy about 140,000 square feet on the 97-acre site of the former Worthington Steel Plant. The development is slated for completion in 2008.

"Wegmans is extremely selective in determining new site locations, since it only opens two or three new stores per year," said Wegmans s.v.p. of real estate development Ralph Uttaro in a statement. "The Worthington site meets all of Wegmans' new site criteria, including great regional access."

Said O'Neill Properties Group founder and chairman Brian O'Neill: "Wegmans sets the bar for the grocery industry in volume, customer service, and loyalty. No one else comes close. The decision was simple. Wegmans is exactly what 21st-century families who are very particular about their food choices are looking for. With some customers willing to drive more than 20 miles for the Wegmans experience, the Wegmans customer is the same customer our other Worthington luxury retail shops want in their stores."

The grocer will be one of four anchor retail tenants in the development, which is to include 745,000 square feet of retail, restaurants, and entertainment; 753 multifamily homes; and 185,000 square feet of Class A office space, as well as such amenities as a town square and a bike path. Once complete, Worthington projects an estimated 7,000,000 visitors annually.

Wegmans operates 71 stores in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, and Maryland, and carries and over 70,000 products.