Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown said he anticipates a late-July reopening of the Tops Market on Jefferson Avenue. Brown made the statement Tuesday following a tour of the site where 10 people were murdered and three others wounded in a racist attack on shoppers May 14.
It was the first time Brown, who said he and members of his family shop at the store “periodically,” had stepped foot in the store since that day.
“I have to honestly say it did have an impact on me,” he said of walking through the doors of the supermarket. “I did feel some trepidation, some concern going back in.”
But it will not be the same looking Tops Market frequent shoppers were accustomed to as the store continues to go through an extensive renovation process.
“The store looks completely different inside,” Brown said. “It does not look like the same store on the interior. And there are also substantial exterior renovations being done. I'm pleased with how top says listen to their customers, listen to the community, listen to their employees. And they have really done a good job in renovating the store and making the store look like a new supermarket.”
Brown acknowledged that many people may feel the same way he did when entering the store and some people may never shop there again.
“Everyone is not going to feel comfortable coming back to the store. And we certainly understand that,” he said.
Store security will be bolstered but Brown said he will wait for Tops to provide further details.
