Ozarks Natural Foods sets move to former IGA location

FAYETTEVILLE — Ozark Natural Foods will be able to move into the former IGA building without an immediate deal in place to sell its store at Evelyn Hills Shopping Center, a co-op manager said Monday.

The co-op closed on purchasing the building at 380 N. College Ave. for $3.6 million on Friday, according to records.

Its space at Evelyn Hills is on the market for $3.7 million, real estate agent Sterling Hamilton said.

After doing due diligence and working through various scenarios, the co-op board decided the risk wasn’t too great to buy the new building without simultaneously selling the old one, said Mike Anzalone, general manager.

“We’ve been debt-free for a long time. We’ve enjoyed having cash on hand for a long time,” he said. “We’ve been very comfortable being that kind of business.”

In July, the co-op announced its intention to move from Evelyn Hills to the spot closer to downtown at the corner of North College Avenue and East Lafayette Street. The plan hit a snag, however, last month when the prospective buyer pulled out of the deal.

The board wanted time to re-evaluate, Anzalone said. The Charles Agee family was still receptive to the idea of selling the building to the coop, he said. The Agee family has owned it for decades as the building has changed from Marvin’s IGA, to IGA, Saver’s Club and, most recently, to CV’s Family Foods.

“A big part of it was the Agees’ willingness to allow us to go through this process,” Anzalone said. “I think they were really committed to keeping a grocery store in that part of town.”

Ozark Natural Foods bought the Evelyn Hills space in 2008 but spent years in several locations downtown before then. Moving back downtown will allow more grab-and-go shoppers to come to the store, Anzalone said.

Renovation work will begin immediately, Anzalone said. The co-op has teamed with local agencies BLKBOX and Modus Studio for design work, and will begin interviewing contractors likely next week, he said.

The new store should be able to open in less than a year, Anzalone said.

“We’re not going to waste any time,” he said.

File photo/NWA Democrat-Gazette/DAVID GOTTSCHALK The former IGA building at 380 N. College Ave. was purchased by Ozark Natural Foods, currently housed in the Evelyn Hills Shopping Center.