City of Madison politicians have thus far spent over $9 million buying and financing improvements on a 24,000-square foot portion of a new multi-use development right next to the Pick ‘n Save that never closed — and that apparently has no plans to close anytime soon.
Kurt Welton, one of the owners of the building that Pick ’n Save leases, said he just signed a renewal. He declined to discuss further details of the new lease, citing confidentiality requirements, but did question why the city is involved with the nearby development in the first place.
“I don’t understand where the city is coming from on this,” he said. “Within a mile, there are four or five grocery stores. It is not a desert.”
“Why does the city think it needs to spend $10 million to bring groceries there when they already have groceries? This is the way communists think.”
Pick ’n Save stores in Wisconsin are run by Roundy’s, which is a subsidiary of Kroger. A Kroger spokesperson did not return a call for comment, but in 2024 a Roundy’s corporate affairs manager told a local Madison publication, Isthmus, that the company was planning to “continue to provide access to fresh foods at affordable prices” at the South Park Street location.
Meanwhile, Madison city officials — having already doled out millions — now own a nearby space at 815 Cedar St. that, it appears, was not built to easily house a grocery store.
The space, for instance, reportedly had insufficient electrical power and the building had a roof that won’t accommodate necessary equipment. A large bank of windows and the floor plan are also less than ideal.
The building “wasn’t built for a grocer, even though it was supposed to be,” said Kristi Maurer, the grocer who will open Maurer’s Urban Grocery in the city-owned space.
“A lot of the journey has been dealing with the building and the reality of the building,” she said.