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After 30 years of being one of Hyattsville’s staple grocery stores, the Safeway on Hamilton Street is closing Saturday, and residents and community leaders are hoping its replacement can better suit their needs.

“Although it’s always unfortunate to see a business close locally, it seems to me that Safeway had every opportunity to improve the store, to update it and upgrade it,” said Stuart Eisenberg, executive director of the Hyattsville Community Development Corp. “It seems like we lost their commitment to this market and I think that’s a big mistake.”

Hyattsville residents have cited unsanitary conditions at the Safeway store, expired products and a narrow selection in the past several years as reasons why it needed help.

Eisenberg said Safeway gave up on the Hyattsville location and did not effectively cater to the community, leaving many hopeful the new grocery store taking its place, Bestway, a Hispanic supermarket serving Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia, will provide a better grocery shopping experience.

Bestway has committed to inhabiting the Hamilton Street location after Safeway leaves, but a date for the store opening is not yet set. A Bestway representative could not be reached for comment.

Hyattsville resident Dustin Franco said he grew up in the Hyattsville area and remembers Safeway providing an excellent place to shop. But after returning to the area one year ago, after living in Montgomery County for five years, he said the store “needed help.”

“I feel that Safeway gave up on that location and never intended on upgrading it,” he said.

Safeway officials made the decision to close the location about 30 days ago, said Safeway Eastern Division spokesman Craig Muckle.

He said in 2010, Safeway was eyeing a new Hyattsville store location in the University Town Center but the deal “fell through.”

“When that deal went through, it wasn’t a good thing,” he said. “We wanted to replace [the Hamilton Street] store, but not on the same location. We were not meeting our needs as well as the full needs of the community, so we decided to close it.”

He said Safeway does not share sales or profit figures, but did say fewer people were shopping at the location. The nearest Safeway from the Hamilton Street location is roughly 6.5 miles away, in Greenbelt.

Eisenberg said when Safeway lost its opportunity to relocate, Hyattsville lost their commitment to the area. He said over the years, Safeway was not listening to the community on what type of grocery store they wanted to see such as a store with a diverse mix of foods and cuisines.

“They thought we were a Kraft Macaroni & Cheese community. We’re not a Kraft Macaroni & Cheese community,” he said, noting that there should have been a wide range of selection. “There’s such a broad diverse cross-section of Prince George’s County representing Hyattsville both in the upper end and lower end. They didn’t bother to do their homework, and that’s why their store was unsupportable.”

The Hyattsville location is not the state’s only Safeway to recently close. In 2011, the company closed stores in District Heights, Temple Hills and Upper Marlboro, leaving 10 Safeway stores in Prince George’s County, not including the Hyattsville location.

Muckle said Safeway is still committed to Prince George’s County, noting that its eastern division headquarters is in Lanham. He also said Safeway will be renovating its Upper Marlboro and Bowie stores.

He said they are considering a new store in Hyattsville in the future, but have not identified a location.

This will be Bestway’s seventh store location. The next closest location is about 4.5 miles away in Adelphi.

djgross@gazette.net