UPDATE: Alderman Misspoke, Lincoln Park Market Closing, Not Market Place

Editor's Note: This story has been modified after Ald. Tom Tunney said he misspoke, and The Market Place will not be closing this summer. 

After detailing an upcoming closure of one of Chicago’s oldest independent grocery store The Market Place, Ald. Tom Tunney says he misspoke, and the store will not be closing in the foreseeable future.

Lincoln Park Market, located at 2500 N. Clark St., however, will be shuttering its doors this summer.

Tunney outlined the upcoming plans to shutter the business at Monday night’s South East Lake View Neighbors meeting, confirming rumors changes were coming to the business. But storeowner Peter Sellas and his brother George Stellas say it’s completely untrue, and Tunney’s slip-up is bad for business.

“It’s totally false,” Peter said. “This alderman is unbelievable. … Lincoln Park Market, that’s the store he was obviously talking about. This is defamation. I’m losing customers here.”

Peter’s brother George confirmed they have no plans to close the grocery store at 521 W. Diversey Parkway, but rather, they’re looking at ways they can renovate the space.

“We’ve talked with Lincoln Park Market because we’re going to work to get their business, people that want to shop at a locally owned grocery store,” George said. “We’ve gone as far as have an architect draw up some designs. … We are on the market, and we’re looking at different options like selling the parking lot. But we are improving our store.”

Tunney’s Chief of Staff Bennett Lawson confirmed the alderman misspoke Monday. The alderman later emailed Patch a statement saying he made a mistake. 

“Last night at the South East Lake View Neighbors meeting, I misspoke in regards to a local business," Tunney said in a statement. "My staff has spoken with the owners of The Market Place and it has been confirmed that they have no plans to close their store. Their goal is to remain in Lincoln Park and continue to reinvest in their business. The Market Place has been a part of the community for many years and I am glad that they will continue to remain in the neighborhood.” 

ORIGINAL STORY:

One of Chicago’s oldest independent grocery stores The Market Place will close its doors for goods sometime this summer, Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) confirmed Monday.

Located at 521 W. Diversey Parkway on the border of Lincoln Park and Lake View, the store’s future was debated after owner Peter Stellas told Patch he planned to sell it. Stellas cited new neighbors like Trader Joe’s and Walmart Neighborhood Market, saying he couldn’t compete.

He later backtracked, saying he planned to compete on gourmet, prepared foods. But Tunney says The Market Place’s final days are drawing near.

“The Market Place has announced they’ll be closing up shop sometime in June or July, or sometime this summer,” Tunney said at a South East Lake View Neighbors meeting. “My only opinion about what transpired since the unfortunate fire at Dominick’s is until Trader Joe’s opened up they had a monopoly, and I didn’t see much of an investment back into their store.

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“As a person who would buy limited stuff over there, they certainly had an opportunity to put away a fare amount of sales where hopefully the profitability was enough to stay competitive,” he continued. “But they’ve been here for many, many years, so it’s sad to see them go.”

Tunney is referring to the former Dominick’s grocery store at 3030 N. Broadway. When it burned down in 2005, The Market Place was the only grocer in the area to serve the dense population. A Mariano’s Fresh Market has been proposed for the former Dominick’s site, but that development is still in limbo.

Stellas, who’s managed the grocery store since 1984, says he’s always entertained the option to sell The Market Place, but with the onslaught of new, big-box competitors, he can’t compete.

“I told Alderman Tunney that Walmart is going to [expletive] rape the neighborhood,” Stellas told Patch in February. “… Since the Walmart opened, it’s absolutely had an effect on my decision.”

But now Tunney says the opportunities for development at almost 13,000-square-foot parking lot or the nearly 17,000-square-foot store could be interesting.

A former developer behind Parkway Point, an unapproved development proposal across the street, said he knows his former partner is still hoping it will come to fruition. Although Parkway Point is far from moving forward, a similar high rise could pop up where The Market Place stands.

“There is something to be redeveloped at that site,” Tunney said. “I’m certainly going to keep my eyes and nose on it. That underlying zoning is pretty liberal. On parts of Diversey, it is a (level) five zoning, which is a mid-to high-rise potential.”

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