Albertsons-no's
Hello, welcome to today's More Than Convenience feature for my Sing Oil Blog post covering the Enterprise, Alabama, Sing Store. You may be asking yourself, "why is this Sing Oil Blogger guy back here on the Albertsons Florida Blog talking about something in Alabama?"
The answer is, the grocery stores we'll be exploring in this half of the post pair happen to have been built as Florida-Division Albertsons supermarkets, despite it residing close to 20 miles (or more) from the Florida state line. I figured it wouldn't be fair to post about it on my blog!
Likewise, now that we've (hopefully) learned all about the long-lost Enterprise Sing Store in today's other post, let's head 30 minutes East on Highway 84 to explore Dothan, Alabama's one-and-only Albertsons store.
Former Albertsons #4339 / Former Bruno's #81
Colony Square | Hallmark Shopping Center
Dothan, AL 36301
Click Here for today's MTC post on the former Enterprise Sing Store
It's been a hot minute since I've covered a Bruno's, hasn't it? Well, today is high time we get back into the swing of things with coverage of a store which almost survived to the very end of the world (2012, that is). While the Mayans obviously knew when Bruno's calendar would run out of time, they must not have established what that would mean for the rest of us. After all, this former Bruno's sat vacant for close to seven years following its demise in May 2011.
Thanks to some help from YonWoo Retail, we have a whole host of newspaper articles chronicling this store's life.
|
| The Dothan Eagle (Newspapers.com) - June 15, 1980 |
Albertsons #4339 made its debut at the western interchange of Ross Clark Circle and US Highway 84 in the summer of 1980. Following the Idaho-based grocer's success in Florida during the 1970's, the chain set its sights on expanding its presence Alabama beyond its single store in Mobile.
According to a newspaper article, the new "54,000 square foot, one-stop shopping center for food and drugs," arrived in Dothan just in time for the summer festivities. "In addition to the regular grocery items, this store will have a wide selection of merchandise such as cosmetics, toiletries, sundries, household appliances and cameras." It's crazy to think how an Albertsons once had a larger selection of items than a Walmart!
The article goes on to say that this was one of 64 combination food-drug stores in Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, and Florida, all of which were operated out of the division headquarters in Orlando.
|
| The Dothan Eagle (Newspapers.com) - June 17, 1980 |
An article two days later repeated most of the same information, but also included a photo of the storefront and of the manager, David W. Jerry.
Unbeknownst to him, this would be far from the last time Mr. Jerry was mentioned in the Dothan press, and the idea that "all press is good press" did not seem to apply in his case . . .
|
| The Dothan Eagle (Newspapers.com) - June 18, 1980 |
At least the favorable limelight lasted through #4339's grand opening on June 18, 1980, where shoppers indulged in a variety of BOGO sales.
Does anybody recognize the font used for the "Grand Opening" text? You should! Leave a note in the comments if you do.
|
| The Dothan Eagle (Newspapers.com) - June 18, 1980 |
A full time cosmetician!
|
| The Dothan Eagle (Newspapers.com) - June 18, 1980 |
A hibachi grill! Clay pots!
|
| The Dothan Eagle (Newspapers.com) - June 18, 1980 |
Imperial cigars! Tapes!
Speaking of music, take a look at the featured albums:
Bob Seger - Against The Wind
Urban Cowboy: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack
Billy Joel - Glass Houses
Eric Clapton - Just One Night (Live)
Boz Scaggs - Middle Man
Van Halen - Women And Children First
The Isley Brothers - Go All The Way
Talk about some classics! Many of those albums stand out, but only one in particular is said to have started an entire movement in its genre; can you name it?
In any regard, these sales fliers depict a small cross section of the plethora of items for sale in the new supermarket.
|
| The Dothan Eagle (Newspapers.com) - June 30, 1980 |
Michael Jackson, is that you?
Within two weeks of this Albertsons being open, it had already made the front page of the local paper for all of the wrong reasons.
Local officials were obviously perturbed by the fact that Albertsons intended to operate 7 days a week and took matters into their own hands. Through the enforcement of the oft-ignored Alabama state blue laws, the Houston County Sheriff's Office determined it would arrest the manager of any store operating on Sundays outside the bounds of the law.
The following June 29th raids led to the arrest of employees from 2 Eckerd stores, Walgreens, Simple Simon, Auto Parts of Dothan, and Melton's Groceries in addition to David Jerry from Albertsons. The paper stated that, "Grocery stores can buy a special $25 license from the county probate judge to open Sunday for 'public convenience' if it has four employees or less."
The timeline goes as follows:
"County officers including Sheriff Clark first went to the Albertsons about 9:05 a.m. Sunday.
Clark said no arrests were made then because Albertsons was complying with the law.
He returned at 2:35 p.m. when undercover agents determined that the store was not complying with the law.
He said on his first visit the store only had four employees in the grocery section. Only one cash register was operating.
At 2:35 p.m. the store had seven cash registers going and 27 employees, county officers said.
At 2:45 p.m. it had 29 employees and nine cash registers going, they added.
Clark said the dates on the Albertsons cash register receipt tickets was June 28, but the merchandise was being sold on the 29th, Sunday.
Clark said he wanted to point that out in the event there was some question later about the date . . .
Albertsons about midnight Saturday night was hailed by a group of customers wanting to know when the action was going to start. They had thought someone would be arrested shortly after midnight . . .
Despite the arrests yesterday, none of the stores were closed. The law does not provide for the closing of stores, said a sheriff's department spokesman. He said it would take a court order to close them."
Following the arrests, those taken into custody were released on their own recognizance, further providing evidence that the measures taken were simply a publicity stunt. It's also noted that David Jerry's attorney was present at the store when he was arrested, which, along with the fact that the store was in compliance during the morning raid, indicates that Albertsons was fully aware of the crime it was committing (regardless of how petty).
|
| The Dothan Eagle (Newspapers.com) - July 3, 1980 |
The crackdown on 'blue laws' received all sorts of reactions from the locals, such as:
"Several people in Dothan are cheering the effort of Mayor Grant, or King James, against the large Villian [sic] called Albertsons. Mr. Grant and Mr. Sorrels have joined forces to enforce the "blue" laws for the first time since 1976. I guess the opening of Albertsons has something to do with the current wave of action by our city fathers . . .
Anyone can go to the local shopping mall and purchase any type of drug available, yet nothing is done about this.
Someone buying beer at Albertsons or shopping on Sunday is more important to our officials than any other problem in our city."
Another letter reads, "It's wonderful to no longer be living in the 1850's. Dothan is finally catching up," referencing the fact that many surrounding cities have allowed businesses to be open on Sunday for years.
Several of the letters also point out how the city's new water park, Water World, was open on Sunday and mention how the mayor seemed hypocritical in the battles he is picking. Maybe he just wanted a chance to test out the new wave pool and triple water slide on his day of rest? An any regard, the park was certainly top of mind, having just opened on May 3rd of that year on the site of the former WWII-era Dothan Municipal Airport (whose runways are still easily spotted in modern satellite images) roughly a mile from the Albertsons.
|
| The Dothan Eagle (Newspapers.com) - July 22, 1980 |
Following two Sundays of raids and arrests, Albertsons was granted a restraining order by a circuit court judge against the local sheriff's and police departments to prevent any additional employees from being arrested for working on Sundays. Similar orders were also granted to area Walgreens and Eckerd pharmacies to prevent harassment until the defendants could have their day in court.
I'm not entirely sure how or when the matter was resolved, but the Alabama state blue laws were eventually repealed or disregarded following the 1980 Dothan drama.
|
| The Dothan Eagle (Newspapers.com) - January 3, 1985 |
I'd imagine that the blue law spat put a sour taste in Albertsons' mouth because in 1985, the company announced it was exiting the state of Alabama by selling its seven stores to Bruno's.
|
Bruno’s Number |
Albertsons Number |
City |
|
80 |
||
|
81 |
4339 |
Dothan |
|
82 / 69 (FoodMax) |
||
|
83 / 28 (Food World) |
||
|
84 |
4337 |
|
|
85 |
4348 |
|
|
86 |
4352 |
These stores marked a big push for the Alabama grocer, considering how the Bruno family had only recently brought their name back to storefronts by opening the first namesake "gourmet" supermarket in Hoover, AL, in 1983.
Likewise, these seven stores were all reopened as Bruno's in early 1985 and were given sequential numbers based on their geographic locations in the state.
|
| The Dothan Progress (Newspapers.com) - January 23, 1985 |
Following the announcement, outgoing Albertsons manager David Jerry wrote a letter to the Dothan Progress thanking the citizens for their support during "the initial hoopla that surrounded our grand opening." He states how the Blue Law controversy brought him anxiety to leave the area, but the people of Dothan ultimately made his family want to stay. It appears that David went on to become Vice President of Albertsons' Great Plains division before passing away at the age of 53 in 2002.
|
| The Dothan Progress (Newspapers.com) - January 11, 1989 |
Despite Albertsons' troubles, Bruno's seemed to do just fine in Dothan during the 1980's and 1990's.
|
| The Dothan Eagle (Newspapers.com) - August 10, 2005 |
The store would continue on as such until late-2005 when it was converted to a Southern Family Market as part of the Bruno's death spiral. If you'll remember from my extensively dense history lesson on the decline of the Alabama grocer, C&S Wholesale acquired 104 supermarkets from BI-LO/Bruno's in 2005 and converted the stores to the newly-created Southern Family Markets name.
|
| Former Southern Family Market / Former BI-LO - Manchester, TN - June 2023 |
C&S continued to use the name as it whittled away stores until 2009, when the wholesaler purchased the remaining 56 Bruno's, Food World, & Piggly Wiggly stores out of (another) bankruptcy designed to keep BI-LO afloat. It was then that C&S scrapped the SFM brand and converted nearly all of its remaining stores back to either the Bruno's, Food World, or Piggly Wiggly banner.
|
| Courtesy idealwheels (YouTube) - August 26, 2010 |
It was around this time that <insert store name here> #81 remodeled to become a Bruno's once again (as if the brand still meant anything), with the conversion also including a new paint scheme.
YonWoo took these screenshots from a YouTube video depicting Dothan in 2010, and I'd encourage you to check it out to get the whole picture.
|
| Courtesy idealwheels (YouTube) - August 26, 2010 |
Thinking back, I attended a wedding in Dothan earlier in 2010 and stayed at a hotel just south of the shopping center. I seem to vaguely remember noticing this Bruno's store but had no reason to stop in during my trip. Like Bruno's itself, unfortunately, the marriage has since wound up like a dramatic reality TV series including suspected drug use, salacious affairs, and even a spoiled tropical hit-man murder plot (I couldn't make this stuff up if I tried). Needless to say, the couple is no longer together.
|
| Courtesy idealwheels (YouTube) - August 26, 2010 |
Something else I noticed in the video was the sign for a Curves franchise in the center – talk about a business that was in better shape back in 2010!
|
| Courtesy idealwheels (YouTube) - August 26, 2010 |
It's shocking how this store maintained its original Albertsons configuration and stucco for its entire 30 year lifespan as a supermarket.
|
| Courtesy idealwheels (YouTube) - August 26, 2010 |
Just look at those original swinging doors!
|
| Courtesy idealwheels (YouTube) - August 26, 2010 |
Off to the right, we see the "Vincent's" logo used for Bruno's deli and ready-to-eat meals; the brand was named for Joe Bruno's father who immigrated from Sicily (Picture it: Sicily, 1909).
|
| The Dothan Eagle - April 11, 2011 |
Despite the rebranding attempts, this store officially announced it was going out of business in April 2011, with a scheduled closing between May 11 - May 20, 2011, depending on when it ran out of stock.
The rest of Bruno's would follow suit the following year following a botched sale to upstart Belle Foods.
|
| WFSA - April 30, 2018 |
This store would sit vacant, as mentioned previously, for close to seven years following Bruno's exit.
An investment group eventually bought the property in 2017 and worked diligently to find new tenants for the space. Dothan shoppers hoped for a new specialty supermarket, like Whole Foods, but were instead gifted with an expanded Brukes Outlet and a new Home Goods, followed shortly thereafter by The Shoe Department.
That, folks, brings us to today (or August 2022) where we find the same three businesses in the modified supermarket. The above WFSA photo indicates that there isn't much left behind from Bruno's or Albertsons, but I guess we'll have to venture inside to find out for ourselves.
As a supermarket, the building's entrance would have roughly lined up with the Home Goods façade and led to a bank of cash registers.
Inside, however, we see that many things have changed considering how real lemons were swapped for artificial varieties.
The floors and lights were replaced in 2018 as well, giving us little indication that this shot would have been looking toward the grocery department. As one business falls, I suppose another one is bound to rise in its place.
Wow, more produce! At least the Home Goods pineapples don't leave us with the same prickly feeling as buying a clearance chair that is unraveling before our eyes.
Well, we didn't find anything in Home Goods; let's take a look inside Burkes Outlet (since rebranded as simply "Bealls").
I think you'd wind up like Mr. Skeleton over there if you asked me to come up with a list of Albertsons relics in here: I'm at a loss!
I do know that if this shot were taken in 1980, we'd be looking back toward the deli / bakery in the front right corner of the store.
I'm surprised by how grimy floors can get after only four short years!
Other than this trip, I can't tell you the last time I was in a Bealls / Burkes Outlet. Not that the store was bad, but it didn't have much of anything to pique my interest. I have yet to return to one.
We'll take one final look from the old deli toward the (current and former) register lines before heading outside.
I didn't bother stepping inside The Shoe Department, but I did snap this photo from under the covered walkway out front. If you're curious about how that store looked, YonWoo has you covered.
At least things get more interesting along the side of the building where we find some untouched stucco and river rock panels left behind by Albertsons. The Shoe Department's side entrance also lines up with Albertson's old pharmacy side entrance.
Contrary to the front of the store, it's hard to miss the fact that this building was once an Albertsons from over here!
Our parting shot from Dothan shows the back of the store, but I've got one more tidbit to share before we part ways.
The Sky Is the Limit
Former Albertsons #4336 / Bruno's #82 / FoodMax #69 (Revisited)
Union Square | Atlanta Crossing Shopping Center
Montgomery, AL 36117
I recently stopped by former Albertsons #4336 in Montgomery and figured that now was as good of a time as ever to share my photos (considering how AFB has already documented this store in the past). I'll go ahead and apologize for my lack of pictures, but there is something about photographing what is essentially a children's playground that can turn some heads.
Regardless, we can see that this old Albertsons has maintained significantly more of its original character than the Dothan store – the biggest change happened when Bruno's added some new stucco work to the front at some point (or, arguably, when somebody decided to do doughnuts in the parking lot).
Having opened on February 27, 1980, this supermarket followed a similar trajectory to its younger sibling in Dothan by remaining an Albertsons until 1985 when it was sold off to Bruno's.
At that time, it was assigned store #82, which it retained until October 1988 when it was converted to the FoodMax discount banner and reassigned #69. The new FoodMax survived until October 1991 when it was seemingly reverted back to the Bruno's brand. Despite this, it remained store number 69 for the duration of its life.
Bruno's, likewise, eventually recycled #82 for a new-construction store in Center Point, AL, which opened in 1990.
|
| The Montgomery Advertiser (Newspapers.com) - February 6, 1998 |
Several years later, Bruno's announced it would purchase four Alabama Delchamps stores (2 in Montgomery, 1 in Prattville, and 1 in Tuscaloosa) four days after its 1998 bankruptcy filing. When this deal went through, the supermarket abandoned the old Albertsons building and moved to the old Delchamps in Bell Plaza Shopping Center. While the replacement store #239 was newer, its purchase doesn't seem like a wise decision for a company fighting financial trouble.
AFB noted in his previous post that the store seemingly sat vacant until 2016, likely due to Bruno's already operating a longstanding Food World store across Eastern Boulevard (that store also being the reason that #69 briefly operated as a FoodMax rather than a Food World during its discount stint).
At that time, Rockin' Jump Trampoline Park opened its doors; the space has since been rebranded as Sky Zone.
Sorry for the guest appearance by my hand, but it adds an interesting ambiance: it's as if the ghost of Albertsons was reaching out of the old pharmacy entrance to pull this store into the depths of the underworld.
Our time in Montgomery wouldn't be complete without a few updates on #82/#69's younger sibling, store #83.
The Southside
|
| Courtesy YonWoo Retail (The Albertsons Florida Blog) - Former Albertsons #4350 / Bruno's #83 |
Former Albertsons #4350 / Bruno's #83 / Food World #28 (Revisited)
South Boulevard
Montgomery, AL 36116
Across town, the South Boulevard store, originally known as Bruno's #83, was only open from February 1985 - July 1986. That location was replaced by Bruno's #87 just to the east in August of that year and was converted to Food World #28 by September 1986.
|
| The Montgomery Advertiser (Newspapers.com) - Food World #28 / Former Albertsons #4350 - December 29, 1999 |
It appears that the Food World format worked out well for this location because it managed to survive up until the major 2009 closure round.
Today, it lives on as Fresh Value Montgomery looking largely the same as it did when YonWoo toured the place several years back.
If all of Bruno's name changes over the years hasn't confused you, then you are better at keeping track of things than I am!
Circling back to Dothan, let's take a look at some aerial and street views before we part ways.
Street Views
Take a look at how this store looked during its tenure as a Southern Family Market. What's most interesting is how the "Vincent's" branding is still present on the right side of the building.
By June 2011, the recently-closed Bruno's was already locked up tight and showed no signs of life.
Aerial Views
|
| Bing Maps - West (front) side of store |
|
| Bing Maps - North side of store |
|
| Bing Maps - East side of store |
|
| Bing Maps - South side of store |
Anyhow, that will conclude today's post, but make sure to check out what AFB has in store for next week and be sure to read over my coverage of the former Enterprise Sing Store if you haven't done so already.
Until next time,
- The Sing Oil Blogger
First of all, thanks for sharing your Dothan Albertsons coverage with me, and for the updates on the two Montgomery stores!
ReplyDeleteThe drama over the Blue Laws certainly gave this store a rough start, and probably gave Albertsons a bad taste about operating in Alabama, especially since they seemed to be one of the local official's favorite targets. Sound like there may have been some local resentment over the Albertsons coming to town, and the local officials felt the Blue Laws were their way to make a statement of their own. Poor Mr. Jerry probably wasn't expecting all this when he was assigned to open #4339! While considered outdated these days, it's amazing that some places (like the famous example of Bergen County, NJ) still have strict observance of Blue Laws. Hopefully Albertsons hasn't had any troubles with the Acme stores in that area!
Isn't it interesting seeing everything Albertsons sold back in the early 1980's? I could buy a package of steaks, a box of cigars, a peacock chair, and Billy Joel's new album all under one roof - it's revolutionary! That merchandise mix is what made Albertsons take off in Florida and Texas during that era, and straying away from that mini-superstore format and becoming just another grocery store is another one of the many reasons attributed to Albertsons decline in Florida, as that differentiating factor went away.
While the Dothan Albertsons may not have many original features anymore (and the only produce still sold here is plastic), the backstory was certainly interesting!
You're welcome! Despite this post going live on your blog, I'm sure it still came as a surprise considering how I asked if you'd post it on Friday! I'm also glad that I managed to find the time to write it up and fill in the few missing pieces regarding the Bruno's history of the Alabama Albertsons stores. I had numbers for most locations, but #69 and #28 threw me off for the Montgomery stores since the other five appeared to be in a sequential block. I couldn't let that go!
DeleteYeah, the local officials had a grudge out for this store right from the start! You would think with that attitude, they would have tried to fight it earlier on with the planning and zoning board (except that the land was already likely zoned commercial). Maybe all of the locals were just big Winn-Dixie fans! I can also imagine that Mr. Jerry was not expecting the onslaught of publicity that would result from his station in Dothan, but he hat to have expected some of it once installed due to his lawyer being present at the store when he was arrested. I know some minor 'blue laws' still exist in Georgia, mostly pertaining to Sunday alcohol sales, but the state repealed its overall ban on Sunday alcohol over a decade ago and counties have been slowly rolling back restrictions. Most places seem to abide by the state standard to only allow alcohol to be sold after 12:30.
I know, that is some crazy stuff! According to Anonymous in Houston, those cheap hibachi grills were quite the hot commodity, but I still couldn't imagine risking my life by using one I bought from Walgreens!! Anyhow, you may be right because it looks like Albertsons had everything you needed to have quite the party in 1980. I'm sure Walmart's larger selection and the introduction of Target to the Florida market didn't help Albertsons either.
I'm glad you liked the post!
Hey, it is Houston Historic Retail of a different kind! I should probably point out that Anonymous in Houston isn't from Houston County, AL, lol. Interestingly enough, there is a Houston County, TX, but it isn't where Houston is! I don't think there is much of retail interest in Houston County, TX other than a really crummy HEB in an old Safeway in Crockett, TX. This is one of those HEBs that makes the worst Winn-Dixie has to offer look rather competent. I wouldn't blame Safeway at all for this, it isn't their fault HEB has let that property go!
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of Houston (the city, not the counties in Texas or Alabama), the movie 'Urban Cowboy' is about Houston (the industrial suburb of Pasadena specifically) and so I can tell you that the Urban Cowboy soundtrack is probably the trivia answer you're looking for! That said, wouldn't Boz Skaggs, err, Scaggs be the most appropriate Albertsons music?!
Cheap Hibachi grills were quite trendy around 1980 much like Rubik's Cubes. I'm surprised Albertsons didn't have the latter in their grand opening ad! I remember that we bought a Hibachi grill around that time from Walgreens or something like that. I don't think it got much use, but then most trendy cooking devices don't get much use! George Foreman grills might be the exception to that though!
It is kind of funny that the Albertsons Southern Division was run out of Florida at that time given that it is now in Texas! Not only that, but at one time, the Florida Albertsons stores were operated out of the Safeway Houston Division! Albertsons had their share of failures in Florida and Texas (and Alabama!), but yet somehow they managed to find at least some success in Texas.
Blue laws were a big deal here in Texas in the 1980s. While there were always threats, I don't think stunts like what happened to David Jerry were too common here. By the mid-1980s, retailers were so openly violating the Blue laws that they were even advertising about it. The outlet malls that opened here in the early 1980s, like the Buyer's Market and Deauville Fashion Malls, were built specifically to take advantage of real malls not being open on Sunday since their fundamental business model was to win on Sunday by openly violating the Blue laws. I can't say I know if Albertsons had any trouble with the Blue laws as most Blue laws were long-gone by the time Albertsons came to Houston, but I know Skaggs Alpha-Beta was often in the crosshairs of pro-Blue laws supporters since they carried on the variety store tradition more than Albertsons themselves did in North Texas at the very least. Anyway, aside from car dealerships (they specifically asked that the Blue laws be continued), Blue laws faded away here in the late 1980s. I'm not surprised that some areas have continued them though as a similar ideology continues in places like Germany even if it isn't for religious reasons.
I find it rather odd that the Burke's Outlet/Bealls is next to a HomeGoods given that Bealls Florida has their own HomeGoods-like concept now (HomeCentric or something like that? We have one in Galveston, but I've never been there). That giant mushroom decor piece at HomeGoods might remind someone of Albertsons/Bruno's produce departments...or maybe of things growing in their HVAC systems, lol. Ah, who am I kidding, that is probably more of a Winn-Dixie thing!
It looks like Albertsons #4336 still has plenty of donuts! I guess SkyZone isn't the only form of entertainment around there!
Supporting evidence that C+S and the Albertsons/Kroger merger shouldn’t go through…
ReplyDelete