Whole Foods plans to open next month at Midlothian Depot, the new mixed-use development at Midlothian Turnpike and Alverser Drive. (Jack Jacobs photos)
Chesterfield’s first Whole Foods is opening its doors soon.
The grocery chain announced Wednesday that its 36,000-square-foot store planned at Midlothian Depot will open Nov. 19.
With the anchor grocery store just weeks from opening, construction is essentially complete on the commercial portions of the Midlothian Depot project.
“We have a few (businesses) that are open, and a lot that will open with Whole Foods, sort of in that same time period. So most of our work is done, and now it’s just tenant build-out and finishing touches,” said Jeff Garrison, principal at Atlanta, Georgia-based SJC Ventures, the project’s developer.
Tenants including restaurants Dave’s Hot Chicken, Turning Point and Pure Green, as well as clothing store J.Crew, eyewear shop Warby Parker, veterinary clinic Petfolk and furniture store Lovesac are anticipated to open in Midlothian Depot before the end of this year, Garrison said. He added that the center is largely leased and expected to be fully spoken for in the next few weeks.
“The interest has been amazing. It’s a great corridor, it’s only getting better,” Garrison said.
Marijuana-themed sandwich shop Cheba Hut and an AT&T location were open as of Wednesday. Other upcoming tenants include med spa VIO, nail salon Inspire, and Wonder, a ghost kitchen and food delivery service. Additionally, bakery Paris Baguette, Blue Fish Grill, Asian bowl restaurant Bibibop and pet store and groomer Woof Gang are also in the works there.
The 87,500-square-foot Midlothian Depot project is largely complete and already has a couple tenants operating ahead of the opening date of Whole Foods. (Courtesy HR Retail)
Bryan Davis and Ray Schupp of H&R Retail handle leasing for the project.
The upcoming Whole Foods at 1051 Steam Ave. would be the Austin, Texas-based organic and natural foods retailer’s third location in the Richmond region, adding to stores in Short Pump in western Henrico and Sauer Center in Richmond.
The Chesterfield store will feature meat and seafood counters, a wellness and beauty section and a bakery. The store will carry local products including Blanchard’s coffee, Don Sebastian salsas and Hardywood beer, according to a company news release.
The Midlothian Depot store will be open from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily. India Lawal is the location’s team leader. A Whole Foods spokesperson didn’t respond to a request for further comment.
Eastwood Homes has recently completed a handful of the 60 for-sale townhomes planned at Midlothian Depot.
In addition to several retail buildings totaling 87,500 square feet, Midlothian Depot also includes 60 for-sale townhomes being built by Eastwood Homes.
The homebuilder has finished seven units, including the model, as of this week. The units are three to four stories tall and range in size from 1,900 square feet to 2,300 square feet. Prices start in the high $500,000s.
The townhomes are planned on three parcels totaling 3.6 acres. So far, an LLC tied to Eastwood has acquired two of the parcels from SJC Ventures in separate transactions that occurred this year and totaled nearly $8 million, according to online property records. The total assessed value of the parcels that have changed hands is $588,000.
Construction on Midlothian Depot started in early 2025. SJC Ventures acquired the overall 13-acre project site for $16 million in 2023. The project secured zoning approval in 2022.
Falls Church-based firm L.F. Jennings was tapped to serve as the general contractor on the $100 million Midlothian Depot project. Atlanta-based Dynamik Design is the project architect.
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