When will the grocery store at the bottom of Grand Avenue actually change? This summer gave Dominican two answers that seem to point in opposite directions. In June, a family-run Bay Area chain bought United Markets and promised to keep it going. In August, a developer filed plans to tear down the 515 Third St. building and put apartments there. Both are true. Under state law, a housing filing gives the developer a fixed amount of time to submit a formal application, and the closest of those deadlines is for the Safeway across downtown, not for United.
The ownership changed first, and the name stayed
The Marin Independent Journal reported in June that Mollie Stone's Markets was buying United Markets. The paper described both as independent, family-run supermarkets. United was founded 70 years ago. It has stores in San Rafael and San Anselmo with about 100 employees between them. Mollie Stone's is 40 years old, employs 650 people, and has eight Bay Area stores, among them Greenbrae and Sausalito. According to SFGATE, the handover happened June 28, and United owner Kelly Smith said both stores would keep the United Markets name.
Owner Mike Stone told the Independent Journal that the name stays "for now," along with "the same concept, price-conscious." He also said any product changes will come slowly and depend on what customers ask for.
"We are going to ask the customers what they would like to see; what products they want in the stores or services. But each store is different, so we have to satisfy the palates of the neighborhood. It will be gradual. It all won't occur overnight."
Smith said in the same article that she sold to the Stones first because "they're community-minded and they take care of their employees, and because they're union, and because they're family-owned and local." The acquisition announcement said Mollie Stone's planned to keep United's staff and would share future plans "in coming months."
So the store got a new owner before the housing proposal showed up. That order is important. The company that now runs United is a grocer that wants to keep operating there. It does not own the redevelopment plan.
What the August filing set in motion
Two months after the sale, Bayspring Real Estate Partners of San Francisco filed a pre-application for a seven-story building with 285 apartments that would replace the United Markets building at 515 Third St. The Independent Journal's August 22 report says the site is east of Highway 101, about a block from the approved apartment tower at 700 Irwin St.
Here's what the plan includes:
- A two-story garage with 387 parking stalls, 285 of them EV-ready, plus 72 bike stalls
- Apartments on floors three through seven: 56 studios, 125 one-bedrooms, 75 two-bedrooms and 29 three-bedrooms
- 24 apartments affordable to low-income households
There's no grocery store in it. Developer Bryce Holman said his team considered one, but "integrating a grocery footprint into the building created too many challenges around vehicular circulation and parking." He also said United Markets will stay open while the city reviews the application.
The paper also asked Mike Stone about it. He said the long-term plan for the San Rafael store is unclear and that "there are many steps that need to happen." He added, "United Market will continue to operate and we expect the store to remain open for at least the next couple of years."
Those steps follow a set process. Greg Minor, the city's assistant director of community and economic development, told the Independent Journal that Bayspring filed under Senate Bill 330. As the paper describes it, that law locks the project to the rules in place when the application is filed. The developer then has 180 days to submit a formal application, or it loses those vested rights. A pre-application filed in August puts that deadline in early 2027. The first thing that would actually change at 515 Third St. is a formal application. Even then, the store keeps operating.
Two grocery sites, two clocks
United isn't the only downtown grocery on a site with a housing filing. In June, the Independent Journal reported that Mill Creek Residential, a Florida company, had filed a preliminary application to tear down the Safeway at 700 B St. and replace it with an eight-story building of 331 apartments. That filing was also made under SB 330 and also started a 180-day window. The first plans had no commercial space at all. By August, the paper reported that the proposal had been revised to include a grocery store.
| United Markets, 515 Third St. | Safeway, 700 B St. | |
|---|---|---|
| Developer | Bayspring Real Estate Partners | Mill Creek Residential |
| Proposal | Seven stories, 285 apartments | Eight stories, 331 apartments |
| Grocery in the new building | Considered, then dropped | Added in a revision reported in August |
| Pre-application filed | August 2026 | May 14, 2026 |
| 180-day window for a formal application | Runs into early 2027 | Closes around mid-November 2026 |
| Operator's stated plan | Open for at least the next couple of years | Not stated in the reporting |
The table shows the two sites heading in different directions. One plan would replace a grocery and add none back. The other dropped its grocery at first and then put one in. The Safeway site also comes up for a decision first. Its window opened May 14, so if a formal application is coming, it's due in the next few weeks.
The stores in between
Holman pointed to the surrounding blocks when the Independent Journal asked whether the project would face criticism for losing a grocery store. "This particular area actually has more grocery options than you normally see," he said. The paper noted that Whole Foods and Trader Joe's are both within blocks of the site, along with specialty ethnic markets. The Whole Foods Market at 340 Third St. and the Trader Joe's at 337 3rd St. sit almost directly across from each other on the same corridor.
Amy Likover, president of the Federation of San Rafael Neighborhoods, sees it differently. She told the paper that Trader Joe's and Whole Foods "are already almost operating at capacity. They are very, very busy stores." She also raised traffic circulation and safety, since the United site sits near highway ramps among several busy intersections.
Both sides are arguing about how much capacity the Third Street grocery cluster has left, and more housing is coming to the area either way. The 17-story, 200-apartment tower at 700 Irwin St., a block from United, is past its appeals. The Independent Journal reported in February that the City Council rejected three appeals and upheld the Planning Commission's approval. The June Safeway article opened by saying San Rafael "prepares to absorb thousands of new apartments downtown." That growth is why the grocery question on these two sites will outlast any single proposal.
The dates that come next
For anyone who shops along Grand Avenue and Third Street, the changes will show up in this order:
- Around mid-November 2026. The 180-day window for a formal application on the 700 B St. Safeway site closes, counting from Mill Creek's May 14 filing.
- The "coming months" after June. Mollie Stone's said it would share future plans for United after the acquisition. Stone described product changes as gradual and based on what customers ask for.
- Early 2027. The 180-day window for Bayspring's formal application at 515 Third St. closes, counting from its August pre-application.
- The following couple of years. This is the period Stone gave for how long he expects United Markets to stay open on Third Street, at minimum.
None of these dates involves a closing this year. For now, the parts of the store regulars notice most, the United name and its price-conscious concept, are staying as they are.
A housing filing next to a store you use every week also raises questions about traffic and the blocks around it. If you'd like to talk through how the projects downtown fit together, Garrett Burdick follows these filings closely and is glad to go through them with you. Let's Connect.
