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The Cedar-Grandview building, once and hopefully again home to a supermarket
For nearly a century, the Cedar-Fairmount neighborhood in Cleveland Heights had a grocery store to serve residents. That was until October of 2022, when Dave’s Market, once located in the Cedar-Grandview building, closed to relocate to a larger space.
After struggling in the ensuing years to draw a new grocery tenant to the space, the owner of the former Dave’s Market building, Sal Russo, is hoping to land a $1 million economic development grant from the city to renovate the vacant property with hopes of bringing a supermarket back to the neighborhood. Currently, Grocery Outlet, a discount California-based chain that's recently expanded into the Ohio market, is interested in the space.
“We knew thirty months ago in the fall of 2021 that Dave’s Market would be closing its doors at Cedar-Fairmount,”
Russo said in an open letter in March to the community, pleading for their support at city hall. “Immediately, we embarked on a comprehensive plan to replace Dave’s by hiring a well-credentialed, top-tier supermarket research consultant along with other professional marketing consultants.”
The Russo family has been in the grocery business since the 1940s, when Sal’s grandfather, Sam Russo, opened their family store in the Cedar-Grandview building. Over the years, it was a Giant Eagle, then a Dave’s Market. The structure of the building consists of a mezzanine level, and a basement, which is considered outdated due to many grocery stores no longer needing those additions to function.
“Operators do not want a basement or a mezzanine,” Russo wrote, “they want higher ceilings, fewer columns and less constraints.”
Russo listed at least 20 supermarkets or drugstores—including Heinen’s, Trader Joe’s and Rite-Aid— that he has tried to draw to the bustling corner. Out of the 20 cited, 19 of them passed on the proposal due to the lack of access to customers, outdated infrastructure, and other regional opportunities.
“Heinen’s was at the very top of our list, and since our families have a long-standing relationship and mutual respect, we were able to quickly begin constructive negotiations to bring Heinen’s to Cleveland Heights,” he said in the letter. Russo offered Heinen’s a $3 million incentive in cash and free rent after a $2 million Vibrant Community grant was withdrawn. In that proposal, Rite Aid had offered to put a 2,000-square-foot pharmacy inside Heinen’s. But, despite “intense negotiations” and efforts, Heinen’s passed on the proposal because the cost it would have taken to modify the small building would be similar to them building a larger store in Chicago.
Trader Joe’s was the second operation on their list. In early 2023, Russo stated that the company wanted to make Cleveland Heights a priority, with hopes to “take pressure off their Woodmere location.” Due to poor access in the Cedar-Fairmount neighborhood, Trader Joe’s passed on the proposal and decided to focus on locations closer to Shaker Heights or University Heights.
Grocery Outlet has now offered to potentially put another $5 million towards the property for electric, plumbing, heating-ventilation and air conditioning. But plans to move forward with the offer are not set in stone and, Russo said, rest on what he would be able to offer only with assistance from Cleveland Heights.
At this time, city officials have acknowledged the request from Russo but there is lack of clarity on participation and how the grant will be allocated, according to Brian Anderson, the Assistant Director of Economic Development for the city of Cleveland Heights.
“It’s too early in the process to say with any specificity that it will end up being a million dollars,” Anderson said. “There’s a lot of information that we’re in the process of reviewing or haven’t received yet to be able to come to any decision as far as participation [and what would be] appropriate and what that looks like in terms of structure.”
Russo said he remains committed to the location and hopes that with resident support, doors will one day open to another grocery store in the building. But options are dwindling.
"At this critical juncture, we are indeed at the 11th hour," he wrote. "We’ve exhausted every possibility to find a full-service grocery store for this location – and we implore you to lend your help and support by contacting City Hall to tell them of your support and urging them to reconsider their stance and allocate a $1 million subsidy to support this endeavor. Your voices carry immense weight in shaping the decisions of our city leaders."
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