Winn-Dixie in Lakewood Ranch to close April 10

Winn-Dixie, the grocery store that came into Lakewood Ranch as competition for a string of Publix stores, will close its location at The Green on April 10.

When Winn-Dixie opened Nov. 11, 2020 at The Green, Regional Vice President Joey Medina said the store would cater to the needs of Lakewood Ranch, with healthy food options, a great variety and high quality items.

But two years and four months after opening, that pursuit has ended.

"We have made the difficult decision to close the Winn-Dixie store located at 11525 State Road 70 East in Lakewood Ranch," said Meredith Hurley, the senior director of communications and community for Southeastern Grocers, in an email. "While we understand that closing this store will impact the local community, we want to assure you this decision was not made lightly. All store associates who wish to continue employment with Winn-Dixie have been offered positions at nearby locations. The Lakewood Ranch Winn-Dixie store will be working hard to continue delivering the great service and value our customers have come to expect until the time of closure in April."

Photo by Jay Heater

Closing signs already have been placed on the front of the store.

The store had replaced Earth Fare, a specialty natural and organic grocery chain store that opened in January 2018. Earth Fare closed early in 2020 because the chain shut down operations. Company officials said at the time the Lakewood Ranch Earth Fare actually was performing well.

Winn-Dixie took over the location even though the space was smaller than most of Winn-Dixie's stores.

This article has been updated with a response from Winn-Dixie.