HEB Buys 17 Acres Of Land In Southeastern Austin For Future Store Construction

SOUTH AUSTIN TX — Officials of San Antonio-based HEB Grocery Co. confirmed the company's purchase of more than 17 acres near the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in southeast Austin for construction of a store marking its entry into the Del Valle area, according to a published report.

The 17.2-acre tract is in the southeastern portion of FM 973 and Texas 71, the Austin American-Statesman reported. The purchase price for the tract wasn't disclosed.

There couldn't be a greater need in the area for an HEB store. The Statesman noted there are 55,916 new homes being built in the area that is bereft of a substantial grocery store, rendering it as something of a "food desert."

Austin City Council member Delia Garza buttressed the summation, telling the newspaper that luring a grocery store has long been a priority. Garza's district includes much of Del Valle.

“In a city as prosperous as Austin, we shouldn’t have families living in food deserts,” Garza said.

An HEB spokeswoman told the newspaper that the company doesn’t yet have a development plan for the site, but noted all but some two acres of the land are part of a 390-acre tract zoned for a planned mixed-use development called Velocity Crossing.
“As we review our long-term planning options it often makes sense to purchase property in advance of our current real estate needs,” Leslie Sweet, H-E-B’s director of public affairs for Central Texas, said in a written statement to the Statesman. “Development in Southeast Austin and Del Valle has been encouraging and it made sense to invest in this land. We have a network of stores in East Austin, and we remain interested in this community and look forward to watching it grow and develop.”

HEB has six existing stores east of Interstate 35, two of those stores — on East Riverside Drive and on East Seventh Street — within 6 miles of the newly purchased site. No timeline has been provided as to construction of the store on the land, officials told the newspaper.

>>> Read the full story at Austin American-Statesman

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