Condos Out, Trader Joes In at Former Nob Hill Cala Foods

Developer plans to replace Nob Hill’s aging, dusty Cala Foods with roughly a hundred condos and ground floor retail have beenscrapped in favor of a new Trader Joe’slocation, the San Francisco Business Times reports this afternoon. Like the condos that were originally slated to sit atop the latest Whole Foods location on Stanyan Street in the Haight, developers ditched plans for new housing in favor of simply renovating the current space.

On the bright side, fans of Cala Foods’ swooping roof might be pleased to learn this will be a renovation job, rather than a complete demolition, for developers The Prado Group. So in this case, all it took to preserve a dubious architectural landmark was TJ’s trademark cartoon signage (and a bunch of height complaints from the neighbors).

Aisles of Two Buck Chuck and Simpler Times lager might seem like an odd fit for Nob Hill’s cultured class, but the Examiner reports neighborhood groups were pushing for an affordable grocer to take Cala’s place because Nob Hill is “home to a range of income earners.” In a just-for-fun poll from way back in 2009, CurbedSF’s readers overwhelmingly favored a Trader Joe’s. So there you go, even Gazetteers need their fix of Candy Cane Joe-Joe’s Cookies now and then..

The Prado Group is also in charge of that forthcoming Whole Foods + Condos development at 2001 Market Street.