South Everett Deserves Better: Fred Meyer Closure Demands Real Solutions

The announcement that Fred Meyer will shutter its Casino Road location has shaken South Everett. For decades, this store has been more than a place to buy groceries—it’s been a lifeline for families, seniors, and workers in one of our city’s most diverse and financially strapped neighborhoods. With its closure, thousands of residents will be left in a food desert, forced to travel miles for affordable groceries.

At last week’s Everett City Council meeting on September 17th, the outrage was palpable. Residents spoke about betrayal, about the jobs lost, about yet another vacant building left behind on Casino Road. Most of the conversation centered on blame—toward Kroger, toward the city, toward the relentless march of corporate profit over community need.

But one voice stood out. Luis Burbano, a Westmont/Holly resident and candidate for Everett City Council District 4, stepped to the podium and offered something rare in moments like this: solutions.

Burbano reminded the council that gentrification doesn’t only happen when new developments push people out—it also happens when essential services are stripped away. He pointed to a troubling pattern in South Everett: the Walmart on 112th, the Rite Aid on Evergreen Way, and now Fred Meyer. All closed. All still vacant. All taking resources away from people who need them most.

And then he laid out a path forward.

• Bring in replacements – The city cannot allow these properties to rot. They must be filled with businesses that meet community needs.

• Support small businesses – Make South Everett safer, more welcoming, and more inviting so that local entrepreneurs can thrive instead of watching corporate chains abandon us.

• Learn from other cities – Look to programs like Seattle Restored or the revitalization of Pioneer Square, which turned struggling areas into hubs of local opportunity.

• Think bigger – Explore publicly owned, nonprofit grocery stores that focus on affordability, union jobs, and reinvestment in the community.

• Create alternatives – Launch a South Everett farmers market, ensuring food access is not left to the whims of corporate shareholders.

  

  
  

While others mourned what’s being taken away, Burbano asked what we can build in its place. We are especially excited by the idea to encourage a food co-op or farmers market to open in South Everett. His vision is rooted in the idea that Everett already has the tools—and the examples from other communities—to protect residents from displacement and neglect.

The closure of Fred Meyer is more than an inconvenience. It’s a test of whether our city is willing to fight for the people of South Everett or abandon them to vacant lots and long bus rides for groceries. We’ve been paying attention. We’ve seen this story before.

This time, let’s write a different ending.