always fresh
Check out San Antonio Central Market's big renovation plans, starting this spring
Central Market, already the more mature and expensive sibling of H-E-B, is getting a glow-up on Broadway, with "significant updates that will modernize and refresh the location," according to a news release. "Phase one" is imminent, beginning in spring of 2024, and initial plans for "phase two" have been submitted to the city of Alamo Heights.
The current store has been in place since 1951, when it started as an H-E-B. It became Central Market in 1999. Now it's 90,000 square feet (about one-and-a-half football fields), and is one of only 10 Central Market stores across Texas. Phase one includes pedestrian and driver improvements like parking lot and loading dock changes, new sidewalks and walking paths, and new parking lot signage.
Phase two tackles the building itself, including changes to the exterior facade as well as a "full remodel" of the interior. That means "repositioning" some departments, upgrading equipment for better energy efficiency, and expanding cafe seating. More windows will bring natural light in, and new materials will change the general tone of the space, although the release does not specify how those materials — a combination of wood, metal, and brick — would be used.
Rendering courtesy of Central Market
Some of the upgrades will only be visible to partners, including work in the break room and other employee spaces. Some will also continue the parking lot renovations, for issues customers may not think about often, like flooding.
"For decades, at the corner of Broadway and Patterson, a special relationship has been built between our store, this community, and our Partners,” said president of shareholder relations and Central Market division Stephen Butt in the release. “When our work is finished, the newly renovated Broadway Central Market and our friendly Partners will be well equipped to continue serving our customers with the freshest and best specialty products the world has to offer, for many years to come.”
The first phase is due for completion at the end of 2024, followed by the start of phase 2, which should be done in mid-2026.