Is Harris Teeter grocery store still coming to Lady’s Island? Here’s what we know

Karl Puckett

Signs notifying the public that a Harris Teeter grocery store is coming to Lady’s Island disappeared from the property recently, prompting questions about whether it’s been scrapped after years of planning.

But Paige Pauroso, a spokesperson for Harris Teeter, assured the city of Beaufort earlier this month in an email that Harris Teeter still has plans for the Sea Island Parkway location. The signs, she said, were taken down by mistake.

The location of the proposed Harry Teeter grocery store and gas station across Sea Island Parkway from Publix.
The location of the proposed Harry Teeter grocery store and gas station across Sea Island Parkway from Publix.

The construction timeline, however, still is unclear. Multiple variables go into opening a store, Pauroso told the city in a Jan. 12 email. And due to current supply chain challenges and general construction delays, she said, projects are moving along slower than usual. Pauroso could not be reached for comment Friday.

The Lady’s Island Harris Teeter, when constructed, would be the 13th in South Carolina and the second in Beaufort County (there’s a store on Hilton Head). Developers first proposed the Harris Teeter grocery store in a busy commercial area on Lady’s Island in 2016.

Matthews, N.C.-based Harris Teeter is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Kroger Co., which purchased the stores in 2013. The regional grocery chain employs about 35,000 people at stores in North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, Maryland, Delaware, Florida and the District of Columbia.

Kroger, Co. said last month it is planning to add nearly 700 jobs at a new, $92 million fulfillment center in Concord, N.C.

On Lady’s Island, Harris Teeter is pursuing a new grocery store at 163 Sea Island Parkway plus a convenience store and gas station at 163 Sea Island Parkway. Project permits from the city of Beaufort for site work for those projects are pending.

In January 2021, the Beaufort Design Review Board signed off on plans for a Harris Teeter store on Lady’s Island.
In January 2021, the Beaufort Design Review Board signed off on plans for a Harris Teeter store on Lady’s Island.

The Harris Teeter site had been the location of a Publix, but it built a new store on the other side of Sea Island Parkway. A Walmart Supercenter also opened on Sea Island Parkway in 2017.

Meanwhile, construction continues at a 48,387-square-foot Publix at Beaufort Plaza at the intersection of Boundary Street and Robert Smalls Parkway in Beaufort.