Soledad Grocery Outlet to open in March
SOLEDAD, Calif. (KION) -- UPDATE Feb. 13, 2023, at 2:24 p.m.- In an effort over the past few years to revitalize the City of Soledad by adding commercial businesses a new Grocery Outlet will call Soledad home.
On March 2, the city will have a ceremony commemorating the chain opening its doors in South County. A ribbon cutting and grand opening will take place at 10 a.m.
The first 100 customers to show up at 7 a.m. will receive a Grocery Outlet Bliss Buck gift card in mystery amounts ranging from $5 to $500. They will also get reusable bags and have a Wheel of Bargains' Spin & Win for a chance to win a prize.
There will also be face painting for kids available from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Grocery Outlet will also be donating $1,000 to the Soledad High School NJROTC. The Reyes will also donate $500 to Soledad-Mission Recreation District.
Grocery Outlet is also offering shoppers a chance to celebrate the grand opening with an opportunity to win $1,000 in free groceries. You can apply, here.
Soledad working to bring more commercial and retail spaces to the area
SOLEDAD, Calif. (KION) -- The demand for real estate is evident, and more and more people are moving to more rural areas to find less expensive homes.
For the city of Soledad, which is a quaint, growing city, people there know the struggles of needing better access to resources.
With the growth comes more customers at local shops and residents are having a hard time finding what they need.
"I just think it would be fitting that we have more here," says Soledad resident Valerie Lopez.
With no major big box stores in South County, the drive to Salinas is one of their only options.
"I go to Walmart often, I go to Target. Sometimes I'll drive to Greenfield if i want to go to the Dollar Tree, but yea, mainly in Salinas," says Lopez.
The Mayor of Soledad knows the growing pains very well.
"I grew up in Soledad so I've seen the growth exponentially, especially over the past 10 to 15 years," says Soledad Mayor Anna Velazquez.
Keeping up with that growth has been difficult.
"We haven't as much grown in our retail and commercial. So, that is coming. It's coming slow -- at a slower pace than our residents would like to see," says Velazquez.
The biggest reason for the lack of commercial and retail growth is due to the lack of available land.
"We have a couple of city owned properties, but we really need to annex more land if we want to expand the growth," says Velazquez.
For residents, that's good news for local jobs too.
"That's another thing. it'll bring jobs here. we wouldn't have to go other places to look for work," says Lopez.
The Mayor of Soledad tells KION they're currently putting together a workforce development plan for South Monterey County to bring more jobs to the area as well.
