By Ian Thompson | Daily Republic | September 10, 2008
Gregory Jack, 17 and William York make their way across the vacant packing lot of the Sunset Shooping Center. Plans are in the works for a new Fresh and Easy grocery store and a new Travis Credit Union to occupy the od store fronts. Photo by Mike Greener
SUISUN CITY - The Sunset Shopping Center is getting two new tenants -- a Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market and a Travis Credit Union branch.
Travis Credit Union has started modifying the 2,100-square-foot interior of what was once a Radio Shack store to turn it into a full-service branch with an ATM, Executive Vice President Lila Dressen said.
'We have had a lot of members inquire (about a Suisun City branch) and now was the right time to do it,' Dressen said.
After surveying the credit union's Suisun City members about what they considered to be the most convenient location in the city, Travis Credit Union settled on the Sunset Shopping Center for its first Suisun City branch.
'It will provide much greater convenience to our members, and we are also hoping folks in the area will consider opening an account with us,' Dressen said.
Work on the Suisun City branch comes three months after Travis Credit Union opened its third branch in Vacaville. Dressen said he hopes to see the Suisun City branch open in late November or early December.
The British-owned Fresh & Easy Neighborhood Market chain plans to occupy part of the Albertsons store near the new Travis Credit Union branch.
'We are in the very early stages,' said Brendan Wonnacott, a spokesman for Fresh & Easy. 'We have been pursuing the site.'
The Fresh & Easy chain is almost a year old, having opened the first of its 61 stores in Southern California in November 2007. Work has already begun on the chain's Fairfield store at Beck Avenue and West Texas Street.
The chain, which is owned by Tesco PLC, the world's third-largest retailer, describes itself as a neighborhood market that emphasizes fresh and wholesome food.
In May, it announced it planned to open two stores in Vacaville that will be part of a 19-store network planned for the Sacramento area.
One market will be at Alamo Drive and Marshall Road, and the other will be at Elmira and Nut Tree roads. Both locations are in older shopping centers that suffered from vacancies and have had problems attracting tenants.
See the complete story at the Daily Republic online.
