‘A Safeway unlike any other’: Inside Oakridge Park’s newly threw open its doors 50,000+ sq. ft. flagship grocery store
After an absence of more than six years, Safeway has officially returned to Vancouver’s second largest shopping centre —. Some eager shoppers got under way waiting outside the doors before 7 a.m., more than three hours before the doors even threw open its doors. The grocery store has now returned as the largest retaile…
“It’s exciting to see the reopening here at Oakridge, and I know that this is something that has been a long time coming for Vancouverites of this neighbourhood,”
The store’s main entrance can be accessed at the mall’s south atrium — next to Aritzia — and from the underground parking levels. A secondary entrance from Cambie Street, near the intersection with West 41st Avenue, provides direct access to the store through the pharmacy space. Based on Daily Hive Urbanized’s observations, the new Safeway carries the familiar brands, goods, and products found at the chain’s other stores, while building on and complementing that selection with a noticeable Asian influence and added curated range of upscale offerings, including premium meats such as dry aged beef.
As with many other Safeway locations, the store also includes an in-store Starbucks cafe. Mundel emphasized that Safeway intends to continue adjusting the new store based on what customers want after it opens.
He added that the business wants the Oakridge Park store location to stand apart from a conventional supermarket. “We know no one needs another grocery store, but our team is dedicated to making this a grocery experience,” explained Mundel. To design and build this store, Safeway worked with New Westminster-based Align Construction, which specializes in commercial construction. Tenant improvements, including other notable grocery store projects in Metro Vancouver.
For store manager Andrea Hemmerling, the debut in addition represents a personal milestone after nearly two decades with Safeway. Since then, additional retailers and food and beverage businesses have continued to open, with Safeway now joining the mix as one of the mall’s key anchor businesses.
Sometime in 2027, another leading retailer will open within an underground space — a 25,000 sq. ft. It will be located immediately adjacent to Safeway within the P2 parkade level, replacing the liquor store’s existing location on Cambie Street just north of the mall site.
As well, in September 2026, at the start of the new school year, Fairleigh Dickinson University (FDU) will open its 70,000 sq. ft. campus at Oakridge Park mall . Additional retailers, including businesses that will fill in the space earlier on set aside for the return of the Hudson’s Bay Company, and the residential units under the first phase of the expansive mixed-use redevelopment are also set to be fully ready in 2027. This first phase in addition includes 700,000 sq. ft. of office space within the base levels of the residential towers.
Moreover, the City of Vancouver’s new 100,000 sq. ft. Oakridge civic centre — attached to a new City-owned social housing tower at the northwest corner of the overall Oakridge Park property — with new community, recreational, and cultural spaces, including a new Vancouver Public Library branch, will open sometime next year.
A marked portion of Oakridge Park’s 7.5-acre public park on the rooftop of the indoor mall has already began trading. The new and expanded entrance into SkyTrain’s Oakridge-41st Avenue Station — including the additional underground station entrance — will reach full completion in early 2027 .
This will be a corridor with service-based businesses, including some fast food outlets and a cafe.
- Who: Safeway · Oakridge Park · Kenneth Chan · Metro Vancouver
