When Fresh Fields first opened up shop at 20th & Callowhill back in 1997, the arrival of this 33,000 sqft store was a big deal. At the time, their concept was still somewhat foreign to Philadelphia, to wit, this quote from the Daily News shortly after the store opened: “if your taste runs to Lucky Charms, Pop Tarts or Devil Dogs, go elsewhere. Fresh Fields doesn’t stock foods that contain synthetic preservatives, artificial colors or flavors.” Well, duh, says us in 2012.

The store

By the time the name of the store changed to Whole Foods about ten years ago, most people were familiar with the store and its offerings. And anyone who had the pleasure of driving through their confounding parking lot probably vowed at one point or another to never drive there again. And for those people and others, we bring wonderful news, courtesy of the Inquirer. According to a brief story published yesterday, the Callowhill Whole Foods will be moving in the coming years to a new location that will have another 20,000 sqft of space and ostensibly an easier to navigate parking lot. While the new store will be located somewhere nearby, the exact address remains a mystery.

On a thread on Philadelphia Speaks, one person speculates that a new Whole Foods could open at 60 N. 23rd St., a very large surface parking lot next to the river. We could also imagine a world in which the store could end up at 16th & Vine, in a commercial center built by the Mormon Temple. Or could it hover above street level, as part of the Blatstein casino proposal for Broad & Callowhill?

Whole Foods?

Whole Foods?

Whole Foods?

Only time will tell, but it will certainly be interesting to see where this new building ultimately rises. And perhaps it could be even more interesting to see what comes of the current Whole Foods location. Could another supermarket take over the space? Might the building, only fifteen years young, be demolished and replaced with something new?

Whatever happens here, it will be something that Logan Square and Spring Garden neighbors keep an eye on for years to come. We will, of course, provide updates as they come in.