Demolition of College Ave. Safeway Starts Officially Aug. 5 with Groundbreaking Ceremony

Safeway will hold a groundbreaking ceremony Monday, Aug. 5, at 9 a.m. to mark the start of demolition of the Safeway supermarket at 6310 College Ave., Oakland (at Claremont Avenue), company officials announced in a press release Wednesday.

Safeway officials and local business and community leaders are expected to attend the ceremony, the release said.

A 45,500-square-foot Safeway Lifestyle store will replace the existing supermarket.

The City of Oakland approved the controversial project in December 2012 after representatives from Safeway and three community groups hammered out a compromise agreement during a marathon session mediated by then-City Councilmember Jane Brunner.

The revised proposal placed the new supermarket at ground level and shrunk the project to 45,000 sq. ft, down from 51,00 sq. ft., according to Safeway's architects. It also added screened rooftop parking and placed all customer parking on-site. It reduced the space for other retail shops by 2,000 sq. ft. and included a pedestrian plaza oriented toward 63rd Street.

The development is centered around the site of the existing Safeway and will occupy most of a triangular area bounded by College, Claremont and Alcatraz avenues. Although it's within the Oakland city limits, it is only steps from the Berkeley city line.

The new store is slated to open in the summer of 2014, according to Safeway officials.