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January 13, 2026
SCHENECTADY, N.Y., January 13, 2026 –- Electric City Community Grocery (ECCG) today announced that the Schenectady County Legislature has approved $3 million in funding for the new downtown Schenectady grocery store. ECCG also announced that BBL Construction, one of the largest and most respected builders and developers in the Capital Region, will renovate 15,000 square feet of space within the historic Wedgeway Building for the new grocery store. Construction is scheduled to begin in March with an opening planned for the fall of this year.
“This investment reflects the County’s commitment to improving access to fresh, healthy food for residents and families in downtown Schenectady,” said Gary Hughes, Chair of the Schenectady County Legislature. “Thanks to the dedicated efforts of the Electric City Community Grocery team, this long-anticipated project is set to open later this year, and we’re excited to see the positive impact it will bring to the community.”
“We are very grateful to Schenectady County for this pivotal support that will allow us to provide fresh local food at fair prices at a new community run grocery store in the heart of downtown Schenectady at the corner of State Street and Erie Boulevard,” said Eric Johnson, Board President of Electric City Community Grocery.
“This is a great project, important to our community in so many ways. It’s exciting to see the plans coming into focus and we look forward to helping to make it a success,” said Jonathan deForest, President/Principal, BBL Construction Services.
“BBL Construction brings the experience and local knowledge needed to honor the building’s historic character while creating a state-of-the-art grocery facility,” said Richard Mausert, Board Vice President. “This partnership ensures that our project will support local jobs even before we open our doors.”
C2 Design Group of Glenville will be the project architect. All city approvals for the project are in place.
ECCG is working closely with National Co+op Grocers (NCG), an organization known for launching successful, long-lasting cooperative grocery stores across the country. The centrally located downtown full-service store will offer everyday low-price Co+op Basics items, a robust bulk section, and Double Up Food Bucks to increase the value of SNAP produce purchases and will serve customers seeking fresh local food and affordable staples.
The average food co-op works directly with 157 local farmers and producers, sells $5.6M in local products annually, and spends 19% of revenue on local wages and benefits (as compared to 13% at conventional retailers) according to NCG.
Community members are invited to become member-owners of the new grocery store and support the capital campaign by visiting www.electriccityfood.coop.
About Electric City Community Grocery
Electric City Community Grocery is a community-owned, democratically governed food cooperative set up to address the lack of grocery access in downtown Schenectady. With 1,336 member-owners and growing, the cooperative is dedicated to bringing fresh, local food closer to home while cultivating neighborly connections and supporting regional farmers and food producers in the Mohawk Valley.