The Woodlands Township Board of Directors on Wednesday discussed the fate of two storefronts that currently house Randalls grocery stores that will close in mid-February. After discussion about the issue, the directors signaled that the Economic Development Committee will tackle the issue of find replacement grocery stores.

On Wednesday, The Woodlands Township President and General Manager Don Norrell provided an update on the issue to directors before the situation was discussed by the board members. He noted in his discussion that the township does not own any of the village centers and has no authority over what is inside the centers. He added that Director Shelley Sekula-Gibbs had asked him and township staff to explore possible replacements for the two stores.

“This is the same information presented at the Grogan’s Mill Village Association. The township on Jan. 10 received a notice of the planned closure of two Randalls grocery stores located in the Grogan’s Mill Village Center and the Panther Creek Village Center. According to the notice we received, both of these stores are scheduled to close on or before Feb. 15,” Norrell said. “The property in the Grogan’s Mill Village Center is owned directly by Randalls. In the Panther Creek Village Center, Randalls leases the store property, that is a long-term lease. Some residents have expressed concerns about the loss of grocery store and pharmacy services.”

Norrell also explained that when property is developed in The Woodlands, a permit called an Initial Land Use Designation, limits the permitable uses of the sites. Norrell said the ILUDs for both the Grogan’s Mill Village Center location as well as the Panther Creek Village Center provides that the allowable use is commercial, and it only prohibits manufacturing or warehouse uses for the sites.

“As we look at future development for this site, it is important to remember that the Grogan’s Mill Village Center has property owned by about 10 different owners,” Norrell added. “The Panther Creek Village Center also has multiple owners, but most of the property is owned by Regency.”

Related: 2 Randalls stores in The Woodlands to close

On Jan. 13, Christy Lara, director of public relations and communications for Albertsons, Tom Thumb and Randalls, said the two closures in The Woodlands are among five total closures in the Houston region in the latest round of stores shuttering in a challenging economy.

“In such a competitive environment, our company must sometimes make tough decisions to close underperforming stores so that we can reinvest in our remaining stores in the marketplace,” Lara said in an email to The Villager. “We are working diligently to place as many employees as possible in other locations, and we remain committed to the Houston market area. We invite customers to shop at our remaining Randalls locations throughout the Houston and surrounding area, several of which were remodeled in 2019.”

The two locations in The Woodlands are store No. 2673, located at 2250 Buckthorne Place, which is at the intersection of South Millbend Drive and Grogan’s Mill Road; and store No. 3054, at 4775 West Panther Creek Drive, which is located off The Woodlands Parkway near the intersection with Gosling Road.

During Wednesday’s meeting, Township board Chairman Gordy Bunch said he has been quashing rumors about the future tenants of two sites and what would be in them in the future. He said false claims about apartments or a movie theater going into the spaces in the future are simply not true.

“The Grogan’s Mill site can only be a grocery store. That site is prohibited to be anything by a grocery store,” Bunch said. “They are very in tune of the highest and best use of those sites is a grocery store. We have a lot of seniors that use those sites for pharmacies and medical services. They are proactively directing the prescriptions from Randalls to CVS stores in close proximity.”

Newly-elected Director Shelley Sekula-Gibbs said there is a lot of resident concerns about the sites, and that in addition to the replacing of the store, residents have told her that the Grogan’s Mill Village Center needs to be “freshened up.” Sekula-Gibbs also said keeping sales tax dollars in The Woodlands was critical.

I think this is an important matter for not only the residents, but people who drive through,” Sekula-Gibbs. “For people who live close by, like I do, we appreciate the loss it is going to inflict on the neighborhood. The key for me as a director is we do work hard to fill that slot as soon as possible. If we don’t freshen it up, there is still going to be that complaint. The residents want it to be comparable to other village centers, and I think that is a reasonable request. We want sales tax dollars coming out of that center, we don’t want people bypassing it and doing their shopping elsewhere.”

The two stores have seen an increase in customers since the announcement of the closures was made, as shoppers are seeking deals due to reduced prices and significant discounts on various items. The stores have stopped accepting most coupons since the notice of closures were publicized, and a wide range of perishable goods have been totally removed from the stores as workers aim to unload as many products and goods as possible. Various items such as pet food, hardware and medical supplies have been reduced in price by 10 to 20 percent. Both stores are expected to close no later than Feb. 15.

jeff.forward@chron.com