The facelift of a 50-year-old strip center is pushing mountains of dirt skyward where an asphalt parking lot once led shoppers to an old Publix. Freshly painted new light pole rests atop the uneven sand hills, awaiting installation.
Construction crews are working on the storefront of a new Publix construction that will replace an old store at the Briar Bay Shopping Plaza across the street from The Falls in South Miami-Dade on Nov. 1, 2024. stories and approximately 53,000 square feet, is located at 13005 SW 89th Place.
But there is a new Publix sign with polished green lettering on a white background. A modern two-story prototype Publix will open here sometime in 2025.
Construction crews are working on the storefront of a new Publix construction that will replace an old store at the Briar Bay Shopping Plaza across the street from The Falls in South Miami-Dade on Nov. 1, 2024. stories and approximately 53,000 square feet, is located at 13005 SW 89th Place.
The new Publix, with a second-floor dining area and parking garage, will enliven a shopping complex that looked faded and outdated before the pandemic five years ago. Plans for a renewal started in 2020.
Briar Bay Shopping Plaza, owned by the Lakeland-based supermarket chain since its purchase for $16.7 million in 2015, featured a 32,000-square-foot supermarket built in 1974 as its main anchor at one end of the mall. The Macy’s store in The Falls is right across the street. On the other side of Briar Bay is an Outback Steakhouse.
Demolition of much of the mall began in 2022, with the old Publix closing in August 2022 and demolished in the fall of 2023. The late 1980s Outback remained the mall’s second most important anchor. The restaurant remains open even though construction has been going on for years.
The Publix at the Briar Bay Shopping Center at 13005 SW 89th Place in Miami, across the street from The Falls, has temporarily closed so the Lakeland-based chain can build a more contemporary Publix on site.
KNOW MORE: Two old Publix stores in South Florida are being demolished – and reborn. What is planned?
A year after the old Publix was reduced to rubble, construction crews are rushing to complete its modern-day replacement, one of two new prototype two-story Publix supermarkets coming to rebuilt shopping plazas in Miami-Dade.
The other rises about eight miles north at 1542 S. Dixie Hwy., where the Riviera Plaza once stood.
The old Riviera Plaza on US1 will soon have a 47,000-square-foot Coral Gables Publix at 1542 S. Dixie Hwy. This file photo from August 25, 2024 shows the new store under construction.
On Friday afternoon in Briar Bay, crews rushed the exterior walls, sitting in Caterpillar heavy machinery such as excavators and bulldozers, putting the finishing touches on the center wall of the facade, where the new green and white Publix sign is already on its place hangs. The lettering indicating where the liquor store will have its own entrance is ready.
A crew member wearing a hard hat said workers were under pressure to complete work outside so Publix could begin finishing work inside and restocking shelves for the upcoming store. New stairs and handrails are visible in the store’s lobby through tinted windows on the parking garage side.
Construction crews are working on the storefront of a new Publix construction that will replace an old store at the Briar Bay Shopping Plaza across the street from The Falls in South Miami-Dade on Nov. 1, 2024. stories and approximately 53,000 square feet, is located at 13005 SW 89th Place.
Lindsey Willis, spokeswoman for Publix, said she does not yet have an opening date for the new Falls store. The new store will cover an area of 50,000 square meters, approximately 20,000 square meters larger than the supermarket it replaces. But she shared some details.
“There will be a seating area on the second floor where customers can sit and enjoy lunch,” Willis said. “There will also be a parking garage on the first floor and the main store will be on the second floor. In addition to the parking garage, this location will also have a liquor store on the ground floor.”
According to the South Florida Business Journal, Publix filed plans in Miami-Dade in 2020 to redevelop the Briar Bay shopping center it owns. About 120,000 square feet of the mall will feature renovated stores, sandwiched between the sprawling Publix at 13005 SW 89th Pl. and the Interior.
Publix has opened or is about to open several new stores in Florida. Here are two more for 2024:
▪ Destin Publix on Main Street771 Haven Blvd. in Okaloosa County, opening Oct. 30. The new Destin Publix is 61,0444 square feet.
▪ Courtyard shops in Wellington13880 Wellington Trace in Palm Beach County will open a 58,834-square-foot Publix with a pharmacy and liquor store. Willis said the Wellington Publix will have a Pours section in the store, serving draft beer, wine, smoothies, espresso and premium coffee. This Publix will open on November 21st.
Publix is in the midst of another growth spurt. Here is a list of the new grocery stores in Florida
Construction crews are working on the storefront of a new Publix construction that will replace an old store at the Briar Bay Shopping Plaza across the street from The Falls in South Miami-Dade on Nov. 1, 2024. stories and approximately 53,000 square feet, is located at 13005 SW 89th Place.
