Coming to Ellicott City: Harris Teeter

It’s Ellicott City’s turn to elicit jealousy in the supermarket department.

Harris Teeter is set to host a grand opening at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 2, according to Danna Jones, spokesperson for the North Carolina-based chain. The store will announce "grand opening activities," including specials, a week before the opening.

The 48,000-square-foot grocery store in the new Turf Valley Towne Square shopping plaza, will have a variety of sustainable features, Jones said, including LED spot lighting throughout. LEDs are more energy and cost-efficient than traditional bulbs.

The building at 2700 Turf Valley Road also has a white, reflective roof which will help keep the store cool during the summer months; ultra low-flow urinals and low-flow faucets to conserve water; non-ozone depleting refrigerant; and a host of other efficiency technologies, according to Jones. 

In the aisles, expect to see Harris Teeter brands, including the store’s natural and organic lines, as well as H.T. Traders, the store’s premium brand. “We will offer many local and regional products in our Farmers Market,” Jones said, adding that the exact products won’t be available until about a week before the opening.

What won’t be at the store?

“Harris Teeter … is not able to sell beer and/or wine in its Ellicott City location,” which is the company's 8th store in Maryland, Jones said. Grocery stores in Maryland are, as a general rule, not allowed to sell alcohol, an issue that was revived when Wegmans came to Columbia. 

In Baltimore City, the McHenry Row Harris Teeter is adjacent to The Cellars, a liquor store that can be entered from inside Harris Teeter. 

Outside the store’s walls, the grocery chain “wants to be actively involved in the community," Jones said.

To that end, the Ellicott City store manager has been meeting with local schools to discuss “Together in Education,” a program through which the company has donated more than $18 million to schools since 1998, according to Jones. 

Currently, there are more than 25 positions still open at the store; in all, Jones said, the Turf Valley grocer will employ about 110 people.

The Harris Teeter chain has received an offer of sale from two undisclosed companies. As recently as Thursday, Bloomberg reported that one of those companies might be Royal Ahold, a Dutch-based company of which Giant is a subsidiary.

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Related: 

- Whole Foods Coming to Columbia

- Gallery: Inside Columbia's Wegmans

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