Bay Ridge’s vacant 86th Street department store gets Trader Joe’s as its anchor grocer
Trader Joe's is the national grocery tenant planned for Century Marketplace, the redevelopment of the former Century 21 store on 86th Street. No opening date has been set.
Bay Ridge’s empty Century 21 building on 86th Street finally has its grocery tenant: Trader Joe’s. Council Member Kayla Santosuosso named the chain as the national specialty grocer for Century Marketplace in a video she posted Sunday. An opening date has not been announced.
The store has stood vacant since 2020, when Century 21 shut it down amid the retailer’s bankruptcy. The Gindi family founded Century 21 on this site in 1961. The family later pitched a sprawling shopping destination for the property, but that idea was shelved in 2024.
What is planned for Century Marketplace on 86th Street
Two firms, MCB Real Estate and Osiris Ventures, paid $47.5 million for the site in 2025. Their plan, branded Century Marketplace, calls for about 95,000 square feet of retail meant to give the busy stretch of 86th Street more places to shop and eat.
The owners said in August 2025 that they were trying to bring in a national grocer. Their design called for new storefronts and a two-story building with an interior atrium on the 86th Street side.
Not all of the former department store land belongs to the marketplace, though. Century 21’s old holdings were sold off separately, which split the block into two developments. The new owners control the 86th Street frontage, while a separate project is moving ahead along 87th Street.
Why the Bay Ridge Trader Joe’s matters for local shops
Santosuosso ended her clip with a nod to grocery shopping: “I’ll see you in aisle four!” In a statement, she said the aim all along was to make 86th Street bigger and better than it had been, and that she and her staff had worked nonstop behind the scenes to get there.
The council member said the grocer could bring more shoppers to the neighborhood. In her view, that would help 86th Street and also the independent stores and restaurants on Third and Fifth Avenues. She credited Osiris Ventures, along with Justin Brannan, who held the council seat before her, for teaming up to bring the chain to Bay Ridge.
Quick answers
When will the Bay Ridge Trader Joe's open?
No opening date has been announced.
Where is the Bay Ridge Trader Joe's going?
Century Marketplace, the project replacing the old Century 21 store on 86th Street in Bay Ridge.
