Developer floats plans for Wellington Heights grocery store

Cedar Rapids — An area developer is considering the addition of a community grocery store in one of Cedar Rapids’ downtown “food deserts.”

Developer Brad Bergeson with BB Properties is seeking to rezone a residential property at 1626 Fifth Ave. SE for commercial use with preliminary plans to open a small community grocery store in the Wellington Heights neighborhood.

The rezoning request sailed through a recent vote by the City Planning Commission and will head to later this month to the Cedar Rapids City Council for consideration.

Bergeson last week told the planning commission he acquired the property in 2020 with the intent of eventually renovating the home for use as a residential rental. His thinking began to shift, however, after the June 2024 closure of the nearby Hy-Vee at 1556 First Ave. NE.

The closure sent shock waves through the surrounding neighborhoods. In speaking with area residents, Bergeson said he realized that the Fifth Avenue property had “potential to be better than just another rental property.”

“The closure of the First Avenue Hy-Vee created an immediate and profound hardship for the neighborhood residents, particularly seniors and individuals without personal vehicles,” he said. “It’s effectively turned parts of our city into a recognized food desert.”

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To ameliorate those conditions, Bergeson said he is exploring the possibility of transforming the Fifth Avenue structure into a community grocery store that offers pantry staples, fresh food and other perishable and non-perishable items.

Per Bergeson’s presentation to the planning commission, the store would not sell alcohol or tobacco products.

Wellington Heights Neighborhood Association President Eric Gutschmidt spoke in favor of the rezoning request at the commission meeting, citing a need for additional and accessible grocery options for Wellington Heights residents.

“Even though about a third of the neighborhood has been gobbled up by hospitals and parking lots now, there’s still about 6,000 residents within 1 square mile,” Gutschmidt said. “We believe that’s enough walking traffic in the neighborhood itself to keep a store like this alive.”

But before the project can move forward, the City Council must approve the rezoning. The property — situated along a residential street — is currently zoned for residential use in accordance with its most recent land use.

The site has not always been residential, however, and operated as a grocery store in the early to mid-20th century. Gazette archives show the property once was home to Idlewild Grocery Store, and before that it was Hayden’s Grocery.

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“This proposal isn’t just about addressing today’s needs. It also honors the neighborhood’s past and closely aligns with the vision outlined in VisionCR,” said Bergeson, referencing Cedar Rapids’ comprehensive plan.

Bergeson is looking to have the land rezoned to a traditional mixed-use limited zone district, which would allow for a variety of retail or commercial uses if the grocery store were not to come to fruition.

Work continues to address Hy-Vee closure

The rezoning request is expected to come before the council for preliminary discussion May 27. Meanwhile, the city is continuing its efforts to identify a replacement to fill the gap left by the First Avenue Hy-Vee closure.

That Hy-Vee and another one in Waterloo were closed because they ‘have not consistently met our financial expectations and sales goals over the past several years,” a company official said at the time.

Bill Micheel, the city’s economic and development services director, said conversations are ongoing with a yet-unnamed Kansas City grocery company that has expressed preliminary interest in the site.

However, those plans hinge on the city’s reception of a $250,000 grant from the America’s Healthy Food Financing Initiative, and Micheel said the city still is awaiting word on whether it was selected for those funds.

The city also has worked with the Independent Grocers Alliance to complete a comprehensive market analysis for the surrounding area. That report will be paired with a soon-to-be-completed profit-and-loss analysis to be provided to potentially interested parties.

“We’re still waiting on that grant announcement, and that’s the reason we’ve started down this parallel track” with the market studies, Micheel said. “If for some reason, we don’t receive a grant award, we don’t want to be caught flat-footed (so) we’re continuing to work on a next step in case that doesn’t work out.”

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