A new Publix store is coming to West Boca, soon to be one of many supermarkets situated in the fast-growing region in southern Palm Beach County.
The Publix will be the anchor store for The Greens, a shopping center currently housing more than 20 other businesses, including a pizzeria, a Pinch-A-Penny and a pediatric practice. More than 5,000 square feet of space still exists for two restaurants, and more than 14,000 square feet of space is still available for nine different retail spots. The Publix is expected to open in early 2025.
The Greens, at 19595 S. State Road 7, is about three miles south of a proposed development site for more than 1,000 homes on Palm Beach County’s Agricultural Reserve.
“We didn’t know if it was going to be something that was going to transpire considering they [Publix] have one north and south on 441,” said Jessica Fernandez, a Centre-Line leasing associate working on the project. “But because of their demand, they decided to open this location to help with the population of the other stores.”
There are at least four other Publix stores in the region, including a store farther north on U.S. 441 at The Reserve at Boca Raton, off Clint Moore Road, and farther south at Westwinds of Boca, off Glades Road.
With this new location, people in West Boca could avoid traveling to other Publix locations farther away, Fernandez said. “The west Boca residents are, I would say, in for a treat,” she said. “They get to avoid the chaos and enjoy the convenience of this new grocery-anchored center.”
Fernandez said the other existing tenants in the center are eager for Publix’s arrival because it will likely generate increased foot traffic to their businesses, too.
Jason Gilmer, the owner of Cake Stand Desserts, a small business in the center that sells sweet treats, coffee and custom cakes, said the new Publix should attract increased attention to his establishment.
Cake Stand Desserts opened in February 2021, and Gilmer said he has waited since then for the grocery store to get there. Gilmer said he did not immediately know it would be a Publix, only that a grocery store would occupy the space.
“It has taken forever,” he said.
Fernandez said the COVID-19 pandemic slowed the process, and the approval process for large corporations such as Publix can be long.
Cake Stand Desserts stands out from other bakeries because all the goods are made in house, Gilmer said, but Publix also has a bakery.
“I would have loved it to have been a Trader Joe’s or something without a bakery, but here we are,” he said, laughing.