Could the current corporate offices of Toppers Pizza play a role in Whitewater officials’ ongoing effort to land a new full-service grocer in the community? The question was explored at a recent meeting.
The Whitewater Community Development Authority, a quasi-independent body from other functions of city government, heard a report from City Manager Cameron Clapper about the continued effort to court a grocery store into the community when the panel met Nov. 21.
During a routine discussion of the city’s grocery store recruitment efforts, Clapper said he has been in discussion with the owner of Toppers, a growing pizza chain that has been headquartered in Whitewater since its inception.
The intention of the conversation, Clapper said, is to gauge the company’s short- and long-term plans at its current site.
The hub of Toppers’ corporate operations — dubbed by the company as its “world headquarters” — is located at 325 W. Center St. In its former life, the building functioned as a grocer, over the years donning such nameplates as A&P and Supervalu.
Clapper said his conversation with the head of Toppers is a part of a broader business retention and expansion effort, but added, “It is potentially related to the grocery store, if Toppers doesn’t want to be there.”
Elsewhere in the city, Clapper said there are still a few leads that could bear fruit from firms and developers who might be interested in setting up shop and selling food to Whitewater residents and others who pass through the community.
“There continues to be interest from an individual for a potential development on the west side of the city,” Clapper said. “But there also is interest on the east side of downtown.”
During the most recent discussion, Clapper emphasized there are multiple pieces of a puzzle that need to come together, behind the scenes, for endeavors such as the grocery store recruitment proposal to come together.
“It’s a bit like herding cats,” Clapper said, illustrating the need to get multiple parties on the same page.
Al Stanek, who chairs the CDA, has called for the grocery store recruitment effort to remain a standing agenda item for the group, which meets monthly.
“We do not want to lose track of these important items,” Stanek said.
At one point in the discussion, Stanek asked Clapper if he and others on the panel should be actively involved in conversations with developers, businesses and others involved in the process.
To that end, Clapper said he encouraged the participation.
“Be involved when there’s an opportunity to be involved,” he said.
Whitewater is nearing its fourth anniversary without a full-service grocer.
The city lost its sole retailer in the category when local businessman Terry Daniels closed his Sentry store at 1260 W. Main St. in late 2015. The nearby Wal-Mart, however, does sell a limited selection of grocery items.
The CDA’s talk runs alongside a separate endeavor, Whitewater Grocery Co., under a co-op model.
