Fresh & Easy Grocery Store Coming Soon To USC
Comments (11)
Fresh & Easy will begin construction on its new store location near USC on Nov. 8. (Creative Commons/Flickr)
Just across Jefferson Boulevard from USC on South Figueroa, the new Fresh & Easy store will be built underneath University Gateway, a brand-new, privately owned apartment complex designed for student housing. Fresh & Easy offers their own brand products and freshly prepared meals for competitive prices, making it an appealing place for college students to do their grocery shopping.
USC students have, for awhile now, expressed the need for a grocery store close to campus, as not all students have cars to make grocery runs off-campus. There is a Ralph's located a half-mile mile away from campus, though many students find it difficult to carry multiple bags of groceries home with them, which can be up to a 25 minute walk.
"I can't wait for Fresh & Easy to come to Gateway," said a USC sophomore. "So many students wanted a grocery store closer to campus. The school really needed it."
University Gateway, which opened just over a year ago, has already filled most of its street-level storefronts, including Freebirds Burritos, CVS Pharmacy, Subway, Yogurtland, Seattle's Best Coffee, STA Travel, and Soy. Last year's addition of CVS Pharmacy received very positive feedback from USC students, who wanted a close and convenient place to get necessities like shampoo, snacks, medicine, etc.
Fresh & Easy is also expected to draw business from the surrounding community, and is expected to open as early as December or January, according to University Gateway. The City of Los Angeles mandates that construction can begin at 7 a.m., though Gateway has asked the construction company for Fresh & Easy to hold off on any construction that can be heard in the residential areas of the building until at least 8 a.m.
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Comments
I would of preferred a TRADER JOES or a WHOLE FOODS instead. But I guess I have to keep driving far to get my real organic food. It's totally worth it rather than buying food from some random new grocery store in the corner...eww
I agree Superior Grocery store in the university village just 1 block from campus is the reigning grocery at USC and it should of been mentioned regardless if rumors have said it will be demolished. Besides there is no real fact to this yet. I have been to many grocerys including Fresh and Easy which is not on my favorite list. I hold Ralphs high for quality and Superior high for quantity.
Also don't forget about Smart and Final which is also close to campus and has Big stock items!
Has construction started on the University Gateway Fresh & Easy yet?
There is also a Smart & Final store directly across Vermont from Campus. A little fact checking goes a long way.
I would have mentioned in this article that the market will also be a block from the new Jefferson/USC Expo Line station.
Everyone that mentions the Superior should remember that it is going to get demolished in the next year or two when the huge University Village redevelopment kicks into gear. I also think that the redevelopment will not include it when the shopping center is rebuilt.
There is a Fresh and Easy on Adams. It is a 5 minute drive from campus. USC students already shop there.
Fresh & Easy isn't a "Great Store" if you measure it by how well it treats employees. I want to see them paying the same wage and taking care of those working for them before I support them. I found a site, www.YourBreadAndButter.com that shows Ralph's, Vons and Albertsons wages and benefits in comparison to places like Fresh & Easy and was intrigued.
As happy as I am about this, there is no doubt that Superior (which is definitely the closest grocery store to campus) will be ten times cheaper than Fresh & Easy.
I was going to say that it's nice that there's something closer than Ralphs... and then I remembered the UV grocery store as well. That's probably worth noting in the article because it has been the closest grocery to USC for a long time- and it will remain closer to campus than the new Fresh and Easy- depending where you measure from.