Word on the street: Decision could come this week on Publix in Asheville

Rumors have been flying for months that the Publix grocery store chain will come to the Kmart shopping center on Hendersonville Road in south Asheville. Word on the street is that a decision could be made Aug. 1, which is Thursday.

Earlier this month, the Asheville Citizen-Times reported that the Kmart on Hendersonville Road would be closed to make way for a new retail development. No word yet on tenants. Stay tuned.

I reported back in April that Publix was scouting Asheville. That followed the September 2012 news that Publix was planning to open a new store in Charlotte and was planning to expand aggressively into North Carolina.

Of course, all this is swirling as three new grocery stores are under construction in Asheville: Trader Joe’s and Harris Teeter on Merrimon; Katuah Market near Biltmore Village. A new Whole Foods will be built on Tunnel Road after demolition at that former Kmart site it complete.