Local bodega and deli owners are voicing concern over New York City’s plans to introduce its first government-operated grocery store, fearing it could negatively impact their businesses.
Several retailers have expressed to the Daily Mail their unease about Council Member Zohran Mamdani’s initiative, which they worry may reduce their profit margins and potentially lead to the closure of smaller, family-run shops.
This initiative, part of the mayor’s election campaign promises, aims to establish taxpayer-subsidized grocery stores offering discounted products across each of the city’s five boroughs.
The inaugural store is set to open by the close of 2027 in Hunts Point, South Bronx, as part of a development that will also include new affordable housing—an aspect city officials believe will benefit the local economy.
However, the co-owner of A1 Depot Butcher, located directly across from the proposed site, shared her worries with the Daily Mail. She fears her family’s store, which has been a staple of the community for two decades, might not withstand the competition when Mamdani’s grocery store opens.
Choosing to remain anonymous, she expressed concerns about potential repercussions, given the project’s backing by local politicians.
‘They have nothing better to do with my tax dollars?’ she asked, adding that she sees ‘a lot of nice cars parked over there’ near the planned 20,000sq ft lot.
The owner claimed she was only told about the potential benefits of the accompanying affordable housing development and not informed about the publicly subsidized grocery store.
This building in the Mott Haven neighborhood of the South Bronx is the planned site of New York City’s first publicly owned grocery store
The plan is part of recently elected New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s campaign pledge to open city-run grocery stores in each of the Big Apple’s boroughs
The owner of A1 Depot Butcher, which is situated directly across the street, said she is worried the new grocery store will put her out of business
‘They told me this would be good for my business,’ she told the Daily Mail. ‘They never said anything about a grocery store.’
When asked who she voted for, she replied: ‘Certainly not for Mamdani.’
Her sense of defeat was echoed by a cashier at Empire x City Deli just five blocks away.
‘It is what it is,’ he said. ‘There’s nothing I can do about it.’
The Daily Mail visited and spoke to owners and employees at six delis and bodegas within a quarter mile of the proposed city-run grocery store and all but one of them shared reservations or outright opposition to the plan.
Workers at Hero City Dark Night, Toledo Grocery and Green Deli also expressed skepticism about the proposal.
The new store will be constructed at the Peninsula, a major project by the city’s Economic Development Corporation that is meant to revitalize the former site of a juvenile detention center that permanently closed in 2011.
The campus, which began construction in 2019, will include 740 units of affordable housing and is flanked by warehouses and industrial lots full of trucks and heavy equipment.
The Daily Mail visited six delis and bodegas near the planned site of the city-run grocery store and all but one of the employees and owners said they were opposed or had reservations. The above deli is just three blocks from the planned site
But Nelly’s Deli Corp worker Brenda Santos said she already gives food away for free and that discounted groceries for locals is ‘a good idea’
Pablo Torres, who was grilling and selling meat on a corner, said the grocery store could be good for the community, though he conceded it could harm some local businesses
The parts of the campus that have already been completed lie in stark visual contrast to the surrounding area.
The poverty rate in Hunts Point was 36 percent in 2023, according to the most recent data from the Furman Center. The citywide average was 18 percent.
Brenda Santos, who was working the counter at Nelly’s Corp Deli Grocery, said that she had not heard about the planned grocery store but that she thought it was ‘a good idea.’
‘I already hand out food for free a lot,’ she said. ‘They come in and they ask for food. I give it to them instead of throwing it away.’
Local resident Pablo Torres, who was grilling and selling meat on a corner, also said that the grocery store would be ‘good for the community.’
Though when the Daily Mail told him about business owners’ concerns, he conceded that the grocery store could threaten local businesses.
Opponents of Mamdani’s city-run grocery stores, which include nonprofits such as the Multicultural Business Coalition and City Council Speaker Julie Menin, have questioned whether the plan would be an efficient use of taxpayer cash and how it might negatively impact local businesses.
The Daily Mail has contacted the mayor’s office for comment.
