A long-empty stretch of Jackson Avenue in Uptown Memphis might finally be waking up, with city redevelopment officials quietly lining up a full-service grocery as the potential anchor for a mixed-use project.
The 3.3-acre site, known as Manassas Market at 544 Jackson Ave. just north of the St. Jude campus, has sat largely dormant and debated in neighborhood meetings for years. Now the Memphis and Shelby County Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) is reviewing proposals that could bring back a grocery store, housing and other retail.
According to the Memphis Business Journal, the CRA has identified a prospective grocery operator as part of its mixed-use vision for the parcel. The agency has not named the grocer, and there is no signed lease or formal approval, so for now the tenant remains a bit of a cliffhanger.
The CRA notes on its project page that the Manassas Market property includes an existing former grocery building of about 26,000 square feet. A Phase I environmental assessment was completed in February 2025. In 2025, the agency issued a request for proposals seeking a retail node, with a strong preference for a grocery and pharmacy paired with residential uses. The Uptown Advisory Committee is currently reviewing developer responses that were submitted in late August of last year.
Why Neighbors Are Pushing Hard For A Grocery
For Uptown residents and community planners, a neighborhood grocery is not a luxury item, it is at the top of the wish list. Leaders say a full-service store on Jackson Avenue would restore convenient access to fresh food and basic goods that many nearby households now have to travel farther to find.
Downtown Memphis highlights the parcel's high-visibility location across from Cozy Corner BBQ and near a Chick-fil-A that is under construction, a combo that could turn the block into a small retail hub serving both neighbors and workers from St. Jude and other nearby employers. Landing a grocery here would also line up cleanly with recommendations in the Uptown Community Plan and CRA planning documents.
Timeline, Deadlines And What Comes Next
The CRA says it released the request for proposals last summer and is now weighing multiple submissions. Downtown Memphis reported that the solicitation window ran through August 22, 2025.
If the CRA selects a preferred proposal, the next step would be a redevelopment agreement between the agency and the chosen developer, followed by design, permitting and the all-important financing phase. The RFP leaves room for two paths forward, either renovating the existing 26,000-square-foot structure or tearing it down and replacing it as part of a larger mixed-use concept.
What A Deal Could Mean For Uptown
City officials and developers pitching projects in and around downtown say a new retail anchor on Jackson could do more than just shorten grocery runs. They point to potential jobs, daily foot traffic and small-business opportunities that could spill over to neighboring blocks.
Action News 5 reports that leaders see this project as part of a broader push to make downtown more walkable and economically active, with new investment knitting together residential, medical and research uses.
For now, though, the would-be grocer is still officially anonymous, and the CRA has not named a winning developer. A public announcement on either front will likely be the next real milestone, and as the Memphis Business Journal notes, neighbors and nearby employers are waiting on that decision before they start counting down to construction or an opening date.
