Ground will break ground on a new Aldi’s supermarket in the Quartermaster Plaza at 21st Street and Oregon Avenue in Girard Estates.
Aldi will join Quartermaster, which includes a campus of six buildings encompassing 24 acres in Girard Estates.
The German-based grocery chain will develop a brand new 22,000-square-foot prototype store on a pad site within the Quartermaster campus. It is expected to break ground this quarter and open to customers by the end of the year. It will become the chain’s 12th location in the city and the second in South Philly, joining the location at 2603 S. Front St. in the Whitman neighborhood.
The Girard Estate location will enhance a nearby substantial ongoing redevelopment project called the South Quarter Crossing, which is creating up to 800,000 square feet of retail and 280 new residential units.
“We extend a warm welcome to Aldi as they take another exciting growth step in Philadelphia. As an integral part of this neighborhood, we are thrilled to serve as home to such a valuable community asset,” said Alex Dembitzer, CEO and founder of SkyREM, LLC, the owner and developer of the Quartermaster.
The historically significant Quartermaster location, which previously produced textile products during the World War II era, contains art deco buildings and a central clocktower that sits at the heart of a complex that was supported by its own railroad system, police and fire protection and employed up to 15,000 city residents during its height.
This storied campus is currently home to Homeland Security’s Delaware Valley Intelligence Center, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Regional Job Corps Training Center and the Indego Bikeshare Programs headquarters/operations center. It remains a busy hub located just off the expressway.
“The walkable daytime activity within our commercial campus, a dense population of surrounding residents, convenient adjacency to I-76 and central location between the employment hubs of Center City and the Navy Yard all added up to a vibrant and exciting new opportunity for Aldi.” said Ina Sargen, a senior vice president with Colliers, an exclusive agent of SkyREM.
