Demolition has started at the Publix Super Market and surrounding plaza on Babcock Street near Palm Bay Road. The nearly 50-year-old building is being cleared to make way for a modernized Publix, a 10-unit retail plaza, and new outparcels along Babcock Street to attract drive-thru restaurants or retail.
With a little luck, maybe we’ll get another mattress store!
I’m already seeing more traffic over in the Winn-Dixie parking lot on Port Malabar Road. Other nearby grocery stores to hold us over include the Walmart Neighborhood Market just to the north, the Malabar Road Publix, and the Publix over in Hammock Landing.
There’s no official word on a reopening date yet, but a solid guesstimate is about a year out—likely late summer 2027. (Yikes, is 2027 really coming that fast?)
I’ll be adding frequent updates.
— Nathan
What stores or restaurants are you hoping will fill the new plaza? Let me know in the comments below!