New grocery in Talkeetna delayed by cold spring

TALKEETNA — The Upper Susitna Valley’s first full supermarket, Cubby’s Marketplace, won’t be ready for a June opening as originally planned, owner Greg Pearson said Friday. Pearson expects the store, located near Mile 98.4 of the Parks Highway, to open sometime in August.

Cold temperatures coupled with longer-than-expected frozen ground contributed to the delay, he said.

“We had such a late spring,” Pearson said. With the ground frozen, Pearson wasn’t able to finish various plumbing work and other subterranean projects until it thawed.

“I’m hearing daily, ‘When is it going to open?’” Pearson said. “Everybody’s really excited.”

Cubby’s Marketplace will be the only large supermarket in the Upper Susitna area.

Located roughly 55 miles north of Wasilla, the store stands poised to simplify grocery shopping for residents in the northern parts of the Mat-Su Borough, whose only option for a full grocery store has been a long drive to the Valley’s core area.

Several bed and breakfast owners in the Talkeetna and Trapper Creek area have already expressed their enthusiasm for the store.

To help keep the cost of food down, Pearson said he is doing as much of the general contracting work as he can. Still, the location of Cubby’s will cause a long shipping haul when food and beverages begin hitting shelves. With rising fuel costs, shipping could prove to be a major factor in pricing the products on the shelves.

“It’s going to be a little higher, of course, because of the cost of freight to get it up here,” Pearson said.

Even so, Pearson said he’s looking forward to serving the community and offering all the amenities of a full-service grocery store.

“I’m out at the site every day, staying in my old ‘79 motorhome,” he said.

Contact Michael Rovito at michael.rovito@frontiersman.com or 352-2252.