At long last, Trader Joe’s — the famous California-based grocery chain — confirmed plans to open a storefront in Ithaca, The Ithaca Voice first reported.

“We are working to bring a Trader Joe’s store to Ithaca,” wrote Kenya Friend-Daniel, public relations director for Trader Joe’s, to The Ithaca Voice. “We’re still early in the process so I have little information to share at this time.”

Ithacans have long been waiting for the establishment known for its unusual, organic private label finds, with pushes to bring the store closer to home. The nearest Trader Joe’s is in Syracuse, over 40 miles away.

The “Ithaca Needs A Trader Joe’s” Facebook page, which currently has over 700 likes, has been running since 2011. The store’s most avid fans take to the page to share their favorite Trader Joe’s-brand finds and reminders of the location request form.

Upstate neighbors of Rochester, Buffalo and Albany are also all home to Trader Joe’s storefronts. The chain currently boasts over 500 stores in 42 states.

The last formal announcements the company made to open new locations were in Tempe, Arizona, Cherry Hill, New Jersey and North Hollywood, California on Feb. 5. Trader Joe’s has not formally announced an Ithaca location, and an opening date is not yet known.

The news comes at a unique point in time in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, as other Trader Joe’s locations have temporarily closed and many grocery stores are running out of stock.