A year ago, the Holiday Grill Coney Island in a strip mall in Dearborn had some news to share with its customers: Amazon Fresh was building a grocery store, right next door, creating jobs and bringing life back to the site of a foresaken Kroger.
Fast-forward to May 2024, and the site is still vacant. The remants of an ad for Kroger cling to a window, a violation notice (undated and with no mention of the type of violation) is taped to building.
A utility-type truck sits inside, fluid puddling around it. The carcasses of birds litter the floor, one dead so long it is nothing more than a skeleton.
This is the fate of one of the nine locations across Michigan that were believed to be in line to get a brick-and-mortar grocery store from Amazon, one of the wealthiest companies in America by any measure. The high-tech grocery store would offer optional checkout lanes, along with the traditional fare of a grocery store: fresh produce, meats, dairy, as well as food prepared in the store’s own kitchen.
Today, the Dearborn site sits idle and the location in Grand Blanc is being redeveloped for other tenants after Amazon simply walked away. Seven other cities and townships have empty big-box shells, some with the signature Amazon Fresh stripes on the facade.
A Free Press investigation finds that while the facades and exteriors of these seven sites are at least partially finished, the interiors are empty and unfinished.
According to property owners, contractors, and subcontractors, they were required to sign nondisclosure agreements about the future tenant, enveloping the whole process in secrecy. City officials say Amazon never approached them directly about opening a store in their community.
More: Plans shelved Plans for 2 metro Detroit Amazon Fresh grocery stores appear to be scrapped
What is not known is what happened to these sites, and whether Amazon will ultimately finish stores in Dearborn, Roseville, Shelby Township, St. Clair Shores, Madison Heights, Rochester Hills, Plymouth Township, and Livonia. And Amazon isn’t saying.
A spokesman for Amazon, in an email response to questions from the Free Press, said: “I don’t have details about specific location openings to share at this time.”
But then he added: “Our goal is to build a best-in-class grocery shopping experience — whether shopping in store or online — where Amazon is the first choice for selection, value, and convenience. We already have a large online grocery business and millions of products available for fast delivery, and the next step is to continue building out our physical presence — which will require significant innovation and persistence. We’ll continue to open new Whole Foods Market stores and will do so selectively with Amazon Fresh as we see results we like. We’re encouraged by early signs of our new store design in Chicago and Southern California, and will proceed adaptively.”
The Free Press reported in May 2023 that two locations — in Dearborn and Madison Heights — were on the market. The owner-developer of the Dearborn site did not return calls for comment, and the owner-developer of the Madison Heights store also could not be reached.
In St. Clair Shores, the exterior is not complete. It’s wrapped in Tyvek, and building materials are stacked in the parking lot. The city has not been told whether Amazon is coming, or not coming. In the meantime, St. Clair Shores has had a conversation about the location with another retailer, said Denise Pike, who oversees economic development in the city. The developer did not return calls from the Free Press.
David Rubello, a member of the St. Clair Shores City Council, said: “We don’t like to see unfinished projects sitting for months, especially in a vibrant downtown that we’re trying to develop.”
And in Roseville, a small area that appears to be a storage area for shopping carts has become a kind of encampment, with several grocery carts full of stuff, and a stroller, wedged into the space. Pieces of cardboard have been placed on the floor. A city official said he was not aware of the situation but said the city would investigate.
While not much more is known about the Michigan Amazon stores, what is known is this: Amazon is a rich company that has benefited from billions of dollars in subsidies nationwide, including $82 million in local and state subsidies for five distribution centers in Michigan, according to Good Jobs First, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit that tracks economic development incentives, including Amazon’s.
It is also known that Amazon dominates online sales and the data center industry, is expanding into medical care and prescription drugs, has its delivery service, its Whole Food chain of grocery stores, and according to its website, 41 Amazon Fresh stores in eight states.
Awash in cash, Amazon can afford to experiment with a retail concept like Amazon Fresh and walk away from what doesn’t work, said Kasia Tarczynska, senior research analyst for Good Jobs First.
Two retail experts, one national and one local, say Amazon underestimated the grocery market in metro Detroit. The region is home to two chains, Kroger and Meijer, which employ union workers — important to some customers, and Aldi, for the price-conscious. Then it has its share of strong, independent grocers like Plum Market, Nino Salvaggio, Papa Joe’s, Westborn Market, Holiday Market, Busch’s Fresh Food Market, and others.
“Detroit is a very competitive market for grocery,” said Frank Monaghan, a real estate broker in Birmingham who specializes in retail properties. “Detroit has one of the most competitive independent grocery markets in the entire country, some of the best independent grocery stores.”
Throw in the grocery aisles of Walmart and Target, which are also grabbing a segment of the market. And, “It’s a very tough market to break into,” Monaghan said.
Burt Flickinger, a nationally known retail expert in New York, said Michigan is one of the toughest, most competitive grocery markets in the country. Like the Good Jobs First analyst, he said Amazon is willing to walk away from problematic sites.
He said it is also possible that Amazon has not finished its Michigan stores because it is waiting for government subsidies. But he said Amazon should finish what was started because, despite the competition, the region could still use new grocery outlets. He said Walmart and Amazon “laid waste” to several regional retailers, including Farmer Jack and Kmart.
If any of the Michigan Amazon Fresh stores open, Kurt Heise, the elected supervisor in Plymouth Township, said he hopes it is the one in his community.
The store was newly built, not a renovation of an abandoned big box retailer like the other empty shells, it’s in a high-traffic area with new housing, a hospital, and consumers with plenty of disposable income.
“This is a purpose-built building in a very attractive location,” he said. “I don’t see them backing out.”
And while the developer in Plymouth was sworn to secrecy about the future tenant, Heise said that based on the design of the building it’s clear it was supposed to be an Amazon Fresh.
“It’s the worst-kept secret in town,” Heise said.
In Grand Blanc, the arrival of an Amazon Fresh was big news. In a May 2022 post on its Facebook page, the city said: “The news has been confirmed by the owner of the property. We are very happy and thankful to see this new development continue to progress.”
More: New stores Amazon Fresh grocery stores slated for Plymouth, Dearborn
Developer Doraid Markus said the Amazon project never panned out and he has moved on to find new tenants for a space once occupied by Kmart and Farmer Jack.
In Dearborn, the Holiday Grill was looking forward to its new neighbor. Today, the site of the former Kroger is desolate and there are real estate signs on two abandoned properties next to the Kroger.
According to the Wayne County treasurer, the Kroger property is owned by Dearborn Retail Management III. Wayne County records say the company owes $448,727 in back taxes at the Kroger address. State corporation records list an address for Dearborn Retail in Bingham Farms, the same address as developer Alrig USA. The real estate company with signs in the windows referred calls to the owner. Officials at Alrig did not return calls for comment.
The Free Press also sought answers from the city of Dearborn, which asked for questions in writing. After more than a week and several calls seeking an update on the property, a city spokesman said a Freedom of Information Act request would be required. That request is pending.
The Free Press also tried to reach the owner of the truck parked inside the former Kroger. The U.S. Department of Transportation lists the owner as Crown Contracting and Industrial Inc. of Dearborn Heights. A call to the phone number listed in DOT records was not returned.
Windy Weber, a Dearborn resident and former owner of a record store — Stormy Records — has seen pictures of the old Kroger and said the exterior looks “rotten” and the interior “pretty disgusting.”
While she herself is not an Amazon shopper, she said residents would like more grocery store options.
In the meantime, the building rots, birds are dying inside, and neighbors are left wondering what happened to the shiny new grocery store that would have brought shoppers to the corner of Michigan Avenue and Outer Drive.
Free Press photographer Ryan Garza contributed to this report.
Contact Jennifer Dixon: jbdixon@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Amazon Fresh planned to bring 9 Michigan sites — but has gone silent
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