Edinboro Giant Eagle to close by year's end; where will residents buy groceries?
For residents of Edinboro, the trip to the grocery store is about to get a little longer.
Giant Eagle, which operates more than 410 stores in Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, Maryland and Indiana, has announced that its Edinboro store, located at 606 Erie St., will close on Dec. 30.
More:Erie grocery shoppers prefer in-person experience
The store, which opened in 1985, is the only full-service grocery store in the borough of about 5,600 residents.
Other shopping options do exist for those with access to a car or who are willing to take a bus. A Walmart Supercenter is located a few minutes away in Washington Township, near the Edinboro exit off Interstate 79.
There is also a larger Giant Eagle, a 17-mile drive up Route 99 at 2067 Interchange Road in Summit Township.
Several other Giant Eagle stores, including one in Beaver County, have closed in the last two years.
According to an October 2021 report in the food website Eat This, Not That, the Pittsburgh-based grocery chain also has closed three stores in the central Ohio region since 2020.
More:Economy's Giant Eagle in Northern Lights Shopping Center to close Jan. 2
The Edinboro store has about 50 employees, all of whom are being offered jobs at other area Giant Eagle locations.
“We have greatly appreciated the support of the Edinboro community for these many years and thank our Team Members for their commitment to continually meeting the needs of our guests,” Giant Eagle spokesperson Dan Donovan said in a statement.
More:Erie's Flagship Public Market debuts as EDDC checks another goal off its list
In that same statement, the grocery chain called the decision to close "difficult, but necessary."
Dick Roberts, a spokesman for Giant Eagle, declined to elaborate on reasons for the store closing.
The pharmacy inside the Edinboro Giant Eagle will remain open, shifting to an adjacent storefront in the shopping plaza.
Jim Martin can be reached at jmartin@timesnews.com.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Giant Eagle to close Edinboro grocery store by year's end
