The wait is (almost) over — discount grocery chain Aldi plans to open four grocery stores in metro Phoenix by the end of the year.

Two stores are scheduled to open in Chandler and Peoria by the end of November and another two are scheduled to open in Goodyear and Gilbert by the end of December, according to Aldi.

The company for years planned to open more than a dozen stores and a distribution center in metro Phoenix as part of its expansion into the western United States.

The four stores will create 90 jobs in total, according to Aldi. The stores are:

• Chandler: 2844 S. Alma School Road. Opening in November.
• Peoria: 24665 N. Lake Pleasant Parkway. Opening in November.
• Goodyear: 845 N. Estrella Parkway. Opening in December.
• Gilbert: 1801 Pecos Road. Opening in December. 

Tom Cindel, Moreno Valley group director of operations and logistics for Aldi, said in a statement that he’s excited to open Arizona’s first Aldi stores. 

“We are incredibly excited to open our first stores in Arizona and introduce millions of new shoppers to the most affordable grocery shopping experience,” Cindel said.

Job postings for the four Arizona stores are online at https://careers.aldi.us/PHOENIX.

Online, thousands clamor for Aldi

Arizonans first caught wind of Aldi’s plans to come to the Phoenix area in 2018. Since then, Valley residents and Midwest transplants have taken to social media and Facebook groups with several hundred thousand members to pine for the day the discount grocer would open its doors in Arizona.

Posts in these online spaces range from jubilant cries of triumph at the news that Aldi stores are under construction in the Phoenix area, to a Midwesterner moving to Arizona this month and asking how to cope upon realizing she won’t immediately be anywhere near an Aldi store.

Another Arizona vacationer bemoaned the lack of an Aldi.

For people who live in the northwest Valley especially, Aldi’s arrival means the suburban shopping centers are finally getting something new and unique.

“They started construction on Aldi, people are excited about that,” said Katie Roe, founder of the grassroots social media group Upper West Side PHX, which works to bring unique development to the northwest Valley. “We would like to keep our spending in the west Valley … so to have some of that start to come here is awesome.”

What happened to plans for 11 other Aldi locations?

Aldi has made progress on 11 other locations across the Valley, from Glendale to Mesa. Here’s where each one stands:

• Phoenix. 59th Avenue and Baseline Road. Plans preliminarily approved by the city.
• Phoenix. 14th Street and Bell Road. Building plans submitted to the city.
• Goodyear. Cotton Lane and Indian School Road. Planned as a distribution center and regional office. It has not broken ground.  
• Buckeye. Near Interstate 10 at the intersection of Yuma and Watson roads. Will not open until an Aldi distribution center in Goodyear is open, according to city spokesperson Annie DeChance.
• Tempe. 1715 E. Southern Ave. Was planned as a grocery store, but permits to remodel the existing structure have expired, Tempe Deputy Community Development Director Ryan Levesque said.
• Tempe. 1717 E. Southern Ave. Was planned as a training facility. Its permits have expired.
• Mesa. 2751 S. Signal Butte Road. The city’s Development Review Board in 2018 recommended this site be approved.
• Gilbert. 1225 N. Arizona Ave. This location is undergoing a plan review, according to town spokesperson Jennifer Harrison. 
• Gilbert. Val Vista Drive and Pecos Road. This site is under construction, Harrison said.
• Chandler. Queen Creek and Gilbert roads. This site was planned as part of the Rockefeller Chandler Crossroads development.
• Glendale. 59th Avenue and Bell Road. Planned as a grocery store.

Reach reporter Joshua Bowling at [email protected] or 602-444-8138. Follow him on Twitter @MrJoshuaBowling.

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