Despite rumors being circulated on social media sites, officials say the plans to return a Piggly Wiggly grocery store to Crestline Village in Mountain Brook are still in the works.
However, the new Piggly Wiggly’s location in the village has changed.
Robert Jolly, president of Retail Specialists, said he planned to present an update on the return of the Crestline Pig to the Mountain Brook City Council June 23.
Jolly is working with the Virciglio family, who owned the Crestline store, and the Naseem Ajlouny family, who are partners in the River Run Piggly Wiggly store.
“The site (for the new Crestline Piggly Wiggly) is behind the current CVS across the alley to Vine Street,” Jolly said. “The storefront is planned to face southeast and complement the recently finished Board of Education and City Hall buildings in style.”
In February, Jolly presented preliminary plans for bringing a Piggly Wiggly back to Crestline in the space CVS/Pharmacy said in January it was going to vacate at 49 Church Street. CVS/Pharmacy officials at the time said the plan was to move the store to the former Piggly Wiggly site at the corner of Oak Street and Euclid Avenue.
“When the original location we discussed was removed from consideration, the owners felt that this site actually was much better,” Jolly said. “It fits the city planning better, provides for better access and will be a more pleasing physical addition to the community.”
Jolly said the new Crestline Piggly Wiggly will be similar to the River Run Piggly Wiggly and will be a full-service grocery store with “an outstanding selection of wines, craft beers, home-cooked foods from the deli, a broad selection of produce and top quality butchers and meat selections.”
The size of the new grocery store is still being finalized, Jolly said, but is expected to be a bit larger than the former Crestline Piggly Wiggly, which closed in November.
Last summer, news broke that the Crestline Piggly Wiggly might close due to stalled lease negotiations between the store owners and the property owners.
The owner of the property the Piggly Wiggly leased decided to go in a different direction even though Piggly Wiggly’s owners wanted to remain as a tenant.
Residents launched a “Save the Pig” campaign on social media, but the store closed just before the holiday season after more than 30 years in Crestline. Residents held an appreciation celebration for the store’s employees and reminisced about the store’s long history in the community.
