Grocer opens long-awaited store on college grounds

USF Tampa store is the first on-campus location for Publix.

By Business Observer Staff
| 10:53 a.m. December 7, 2018
| 2 Free Articles Remaining!

Publix Super Markets Inc. has opened a highly anticipated store on the USF campus in Tampa. Courtesy photo.

Tampa Bay-Lakeland

TAMPA — Lakeland-based grocer Publix Super Markets Inc. has opened its first-ever store on a college campus, at the University of South Florida in Tampa.

Publix bakery staff made special USF-themed cakes to celebrate the store's grand opening. Courtesy photo.

Located at 4425 E. Fletcher Ave., the 28,000-square-foot store employs 140 people, including more than 50 USF students, according to a press release. It features full-service floral and seafood departments, plus a sushi area.

The highly anticipated project was approved by the Florida Board of Governors in January 2016, and is part of USF’s new Student Housing Village. USF’s agreement with Publix includes a 20-year ground lease with six five-year term extensions, according to a statement issued by the university at the time construction of the store was first announced.

“Over the past decade, we have worked hard to transform the University of South Florida into a vibrant living-learning environment that fully supports the needs of our students, both inside and outside the classroom,” USF President Judy Genshaft states in the release. “We are so pleased to officially open the Publix store at USF, the first of its kind on a college campus, marking the beginning of a transformational new chapter.”