Has work stopped on Braintree's Amazon Fresh store? Here's what we know.

People in several Massachusetts communities, including Braintree, are waiting for Amazon Fresh supermarkets to open their doors, but no one seems to know when that's going to happen.

Talk of Amazon Fresh stores opening in Billerica, Saugus, Westboro, Braintree and Leominster has been ongoing since last year, but so far none has opened in any of those locations. All are mostly built, however.

At the planned Amazon Fresh location in the Marketplace at Braintree, there has been little apparent progress in the last six months. The store is empty, the floor is dirt and all the lights inside and out are burning constantly. There are no signs on the building, in the windows or on the posts that mark the parking spaces reserved for curbside pickup.

A site plan was submitted on Jan. 3, 2022, to the Braintree Planning Board for building an Amazon Fresh at 200 Grossman Drive. The board approved the retail giant's plan to turn the former Saks Off 5th and 5.11 Tactical spaces into a 37,500-square-foot Amazon Fresh store at the Grossman Drive shopping plaza.

Another plan was filed to adjust signage at the facility on May 5, 2022, but nothing thereafter, according to the Braintree town website.

The situation is similar in other towns.

"I don't know what's going on, I just know it was planned. … There's nothing we know for sure," said Marlies Henderson, chairwoman of the Billerica Planning Board. "The project was completely permitted, so it's in the hands of the applicant (Amazon). The planning board hasn't heard anything lately."

Brienne O'Rourke, a spokesperson for the Billerica Building Department, said, "As far as we know, they are still moving in."

The Amazon Fresh store is supposed to be at the former Kmart location at the Billerica Mall.

Meanwhile, in Saugus, planning board member Jeanette Meredith would like some concrete answers about the Amazon Fresh location on Route 1 as soon as possible.

"Everyone keeps asking about it and we just don't know," Meredith said. "They were supposed to open last fall. Personally − and professionally − I would like to know what is going on. Why wouldn't you want to keep people informed?"

That project was fully permitted in 2021, according to WCVB Channel 5, a Wicked Local media partner.

'No details to share'

On Jan. 26, Wicked Local sent an email to Amazon's media relations team conveying some of the questions that various town officials had. But Amazon spokesperson Jessica Martin responded by saying, "At this time, we don’t have any details to share."

When contacted about the same matter in early December, Amazon Fresh spokesperson Alicia Hopkins said: "We do not comment on our future roadmap. … We do not have any details to share at this time."

The questions about the fate of local Amazon Fresh stores coincide news that Amazon is cutting 18,000 jobs after the company's shares lost half their value in 2022, the worst year for its shareholders since 2000, according to a CNBC report.

The jobs lost include some at Amazon Fresh stores and online grocery delivery services, including program managers, store designers, supply chain managers and software engineers, CNBC reported.

Westboro Town Planner Jim Robbins said he is confident the project will happen in his town. Amazon already has a big presence there.

Other Amazon-owned locations in Westboro include Amazon Robotics, Amazon Hub Center, Amazon Hub Counter and Columbia Tech Amazon Robotics.

Robbins said the Amazon Fresh project is "completely permitted."

"To my knowledge, they are still going to open. We just can't say exactly when," Robbins said. "The building facade is up. There's no sign yet, but everyone seems to know what it's going to be."

More:Amazon Fresh: Saugus location could be first to open in Massachusetts

Robbins said a grocery store can typically take up to two years from permitting to opening.

"It depends, really," he said. "A store with an open floor plan that just needs shelving will take less time than a grocery store that needs to install refrigeration" and other more complex systems.

Robbins said he has been informed the company is working on installing shelving in its Westboro location.

More:Amazon Fresh, apartments to replace Market Basket

How shopping works at Amazon Fresh

Amazon Fresh offers a unique way of shopping, according to the company website, describing it as "an online and physical grocery store" offering "low prices on everyday favorites, plus same-day delivery and pickup in select locations for (Amazon) Prime members."

Amazon Fresh grocery stores feature "just-walk-out" technology and "Amazon Dash Carts."

Customers scan their Amazon apps to enter the store. Once inside, customers can add items to a smart cart, which tallies up totals as shopping progresses. And instead of stopping at a cashier to check out, customers again scan the app and the cart charges the total to the customer's Amazon account.

Amazon's voice-activated assistant, Alexa, adds to the technology used in the store. Customers can approach Alexa kiosks throughout the store to ask for item locations or food recommendations.

This article originally appeared on wickedlocal.com: Officials have questions on unopened Amazon Fresh locations in Mass.