The Rochester region’s first Whole Foods Market opened Wednesday, after a heading off a bevy of lawsuits from opponents concerned over the impact of the grocer on nearby residents and traffic.
As late as Tuesday afternoon, there was a legal attempt to halt the supermarket’s grand opening – an effort denied by a judge.
Quietly backing the litigation financially was Wegmans, which has its flagship Pittsford store within a mile of Whole Foods.
The first Whole Foods opened in Austin, Texas in 1980 and has swelled to a nationally prominent grocery operation. Whole Foods also has operations in Canada and the United Kingdom.
The grocer is best known for selling organic products and for keeping largely processed foods off its shelves.
The 50,000-square-foot store is at a plaza at 2940 Monroe Ave. in Brighton, near the interchange with Interstate 590. There are other businesses at the site, including a Starbucks.
I am Whole Foods Market now, WOW look at that line pic.twitter.com/IyjQTkOB6Q
— Tina MacIntyre-Yee 🌊 (@tyee23) April 12, 2023