Residents in the Red Bird area of South Oak Cliff, a neighborhood grappling with limited access to grocery stores, were dealt a setback when the promised Tom Thumb location at the Shops at Red Bird Mall was halted. According to CBS News Texas, despite an initial investment, including a $5.8 million subsidy approved by the City of Dallas, the development has been halted. Albertsons Companies, the parent entity of Tom Thumb, has pulled out of the project, citing economic reasons.
According to a memo addressed to the Mayor and council members of Dallas reported by WFAA, the decision was informed to the city on December 5. Scheduled to begin this fall, the construction of the 50,000-square-foot grocery store was anticipated to alleviate the scarcity of supermarkets in the area and provide at least 90 jobs to the local community. Following discussions with the city and an exhaustive economic evaluation, Albertsons concluded that it "decided to terminate its economic development incentive agreement with the City and will no longer develop the Tom Thumb grocery store within the Shops at RedBird."
Albertsons confirmed the withdrawal: "After discussions with the City of Dallas and a thorough economic evaluation, Albertsons Cos. has made the difficult decision not to move forward with the previously planned building of a Tom Thumb grocery store." WFAA reported that the company also promised to offer no-fee delivery from nearby Tom Thumb locations to ZIP codes surrounding the canceled store site.
