A new 365 by Whole Foods Market is headed to South Lake Tahoe

Whole Foods Market has announced it signed a lease for a new 365 by Whole Foods Market™ store in South Lake Tahoe, but they haven't said exactly where it is going.

Their "365" stores are smaller, "simple, affordable and convenient shopping experience" Whole Foods said in their press release, stores that follow the same experience many find at the larger stores, just streamlined in. That different 365 store experience is different at each location, some offer canteens, 100% plant based burger joints, coffee brew bars, and more. What is going into the SLT location, wherever it will be built, has not been revealed.

South Lake Tahoe City Manager Nancy Kerry says it is going into the location they have been working on for years where the current Knight's Inn is located. Motel owner Pradip Patel said on Friday that he hasn't sold his motel.

The City of South Lake Tahoe had been in negotiations with the Halferty Development Company for a $4 million sale of the developable portions of the Knight's Inn, along with an adjacent lot at the corner of Ski Run Blvd. and Highway 50/Lake Tahoe Blvd. The City was counting on receiving $4.5 million in Proposition 1 funds from the California Tahoe Conservancy to address water quality issues around the motel as new development was created to embrace both nature, outdoor space and commercial space. Many thought the deal was dead when the funds weren't allocated by CTC to the city.

On the 365 by Whole Foods Facebook Page, the Texas-based company addressed a concern about their business hurting long-time local health food story, Grass Roots. "It shouldn't! We know that people choose multiple locations to shop," 365 replied. Grass Roots is located four miles to the west of the proposed location near the corner of Ski Run Blvd and Highway 50/Lake Tahoe Blvd.