Safeway, 30 Chestnut Avenue, South San Francisco

Uh...California.

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TheStranger
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Safeway, 30 Chestnut Avenue, South San Francisco

Post by TheStranger »

This store is the grocery I go to the most and as the years have gone by, it serves as a time capsule of some sorts, with its 1980s decor package that has never been removed even after multiple Safeway remodeling packages (the 1990s pastels, the 2000s lifestyle variations, and the Albertsons-era bright white with color accents).

I actually asked one of the cashiers last year or so about the history of the location, and he informed me the store has been on a month-to-month lease since 2012 or thereabouts! According to the staffer, this store was set to close once the chain got a new store built at the now-closed El Camino/Spruce site (former White Front) that they had from approximately 1987 to 2014. The new-build project there has been in limbo since then, while this 1973-era store soldiers on and is located feet away from an in-progress condo/mixed use complex that took over a former Union 76 and carwash footprint.

I want to say the current Safeway logo was added in 2019; before that, the 1980s Square S and the 1990s serif Safeway text labeling were used at the front of the store.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/csampang/ ... 0296457383

Image_DSC0477 by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

Image_DSC3016 by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

Image_DSC2176 by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

Image_DSC3889c by Chris Sampang, on Flickr

Image_DSC4586 by Chris Sampang, on Flickr
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Jason B.
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Re: Safeway, 30 Chestnut Avenue, South San Francisco

Post by Jason B. »

The analog clock photo reminds me the downtown Livermore, Calif. Safeway had a similar clock in the late 1980s. As I recall, it was above the main exit door of the store. Next to the clock was a long rectangular advertising space. (Actually the clock and the advertising space were one long panel, if I recall correctly.) One of the ads that I remember in the space next to the clock was for the KRON-TV "NewsCenter 4" news team.
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Re: Safeway, 30 Chestnut Avenue, South San Francisco

Post by Groceteria »

That one has been one of my favorites since I started doing the site more than 20 years ago back when I still lived in San Francisco.

A few photos from 2010 and 2015:
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TheStranger
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Re: Safeway, 30 Chestnut Avenue, South San Francisco

Post by TheStranger »

With the planned Safeway rebuild at the Spruce/El Camino White Front site (which had a store from about 1987-2014), I'm wondering how much longer the Chestnut Avenue store will hang on.

I hope it sticks around for a while more as it has done decent business for a long time and isn't really near any direct competition (the former QFI/Bell 2 blocks away has been the Asian-oriented Pacific Super for about 8 years now).
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Re: Safeway, 30 Chestnut Avenue, South San Francisco

Post by storewanderer »

TheStranger wrote: 09 Mar 2022 02:40 With the planned Safeway rebuild at the Spruce/El Camino White Front site (which had a store from about 1987-2014), I'm wondering how much longer the Chestnut Avenue store will hang on.

I hope it sticks around for a while more as it has done decent business for a long time and isn't really near any direct competition (the former QFI/Bell 2 blocks away has been the Asian-oriented Pacific Super for about 8 years now).
For some reason I thought this store was already closed. Good to see it is still open. The interior looks much more corporate than the odd cobbled together version of this interior La Junta has.

It would probably make sense to keep both this store as well as the new store open at this point. But at the same time with the lease situation, someone could come in and decide to do something else entirely with the land too (apartments, etc.).
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