Trader Joe's Not Opening In Forest Hills Building, Despite Rumors

FOREST HILLS, QUEENS — Construction is underway, again, at a disputed Key Foods-turned-luxury-building in Forest Hills, and rumors are circulating that the development's new supermarket tenant is Trader Joe's.

A spokesperson from Trader Joe's, however, told Patch that the grocery store's two-year plan "does not currently include a location in Forest Hills" — including at the development at 105-02 Queens Boulevard.

Developers have pledged to include a supermarket in the Queens Boulevard building, though, which was a selling point for some locals who initially opposed the construction because it required demolishing a Key Foods.

Among the critics was local City Council Member Karen Koslowitz, who changed her mind about the luxury building when development representatives told her that the new 11-story, 166-unit building will include a supermarket — a point that a spokesperson affirmed to Patch this month, adding "construction is progressing, and we look forward to sharing the tenant shortly."

Slate Property Group, which commenced work on the apartments this June after violations prompted construction to stop last year, has a history of developing luxury buildings at the site of supermarkets.

In 2015 the developer demolished a Key Foods in Clinton Hill to make way for a luxury development.

In that instance — as is the case with the new development at 105-02 Queens Boulevard, according to the Real Deal — Slate Property Group did not buy the site outright, and instead formed a joint venture with the market's family owners — an increasingly common real estate move in the city.

According to the development group, the Forest Hills site at Queens Boulevard, which was initially slated for completion last year, will be fully built by 2023, including a ground-floor retail space with a supermarket.

While that market will not be Trader Joe's, the popular grocery chain has two outposts in Queens, one in Long Island — which opened this summer — and another in Rego Park, nearby to Forest Hills.

The store's existing footprint in the World's Borough has not stopped Queens residents from hoping for more locations, though: last month Baysiders unsuccessfully pleaded for the grocery store to move to their neighborhood, only to learn from Patch that Trader Joe's has "no plans" to open another store in their neighborhood, or the World's Borough at all.

The popular grocery store, however, aims to open 25 to 30 new spots each year, a spokesperson told Patch.

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