Binghamton Neighborhood Grocery Store Closes After 60 Years

For the first time in nearly six decades, people who live in the southeast corner of Binghamton will be without a supermarket.

The Weis Markets store at 307 Conklin Avenue is scheduled to close on Saturday.

The Pennsylvania-based chain has operated the supermarket since August 2009 when the company acquired 12 Giant grocery stores in Broome County.

The 52 full- and part-time employees of the Conklin Avenue unit were told on February 1 that the store would be shut down in about a month.

Weis Markets officials have not explained why the decision was made to close the supermarket. A brief statement released by a public relations firm said the move came "after careful consideration and review."

The market opened as the sixth Binghamton-area Giant Food Store in October 1964. The Conklin Avenue shopping plaza was expanded in 1997.

Mayor Jared Kraham told WNBF News he was frustrated when Weis announced the planned closing because he had contacted the company not long ago to discuss the store's future.

The mayor said he had heard rumors about the store closing and he was told "pretty emphatically" that there were no plans to shut it down. He said "it really was kind of a shock" when he heard about the Weis decision.

Kraham said the goal now is to replace the store "with a high-quality grocer that is full-service." But he suggested that could be challenging given trends in the industry to locate supermarkets in high-traffic areas.

The Conklin Avenue property still is owned by Binghamton Giant Markets. Company representative Philip Akel on Thursday declined to comment about possible future tenants at the site.

A longtime South Side resident recalled the site was home to a range of things over the years, including a branch library, a bank, a candy shop and a liquor store.

Enter your number to get our free mobile app

Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.