The movement of families to many single-family homes constructed in the 1950s in Elmwood and West Holyoke meant more residents. Popular Super Market hoped to capture its share of the growing population by constructing a supermarket and shopping center at 250 Westfield Road.
John E. Hayes Realty Corporation of Hartford, Connecticut, was the developer of the plaza. Mr. Hayes had purchased the 2.77-acre parcel of land on December 14, 1962, from Holyoke's Elmwood Heights Realty Corporation. Joseph R. Mayer was President and treasurer of Elmwood Heights. A second parcel was purchased by Mr. Hayes on January 2, 1964 and adjoined his 1962 land acquisition.
The plans were drawn by Hollis W. Kincaid Associates of Hartford, and the building contractor selected was Anderson and Fairoakes of West Hartford.
Popular Markets began in 1927, when Charles Block, Oscar Spitzler and Michael Belkin formed a partnership. When Mr. Belkin died in 1950, the ownership was split equally among the surviving partners.
Holyoke had previously had markets with similar names, including The Popular Market at the turn of the 20th century and Popular Food Market, which opened on October 26, 1933, at 245 High Street and operated until 1956. The latter of the two was once a part of the Popular Super Market chain.
The Westfield Road site was to include over 20,000 square feet of retail space, of which 14,200 square feet would be home to Popular Super Market. The remaining space would be occupied by a pharmacy with 3,600 square feet and a trading stamp store, 3,000 square feet. The plaza had room to expand by an additional 8,000 square feet for retail and services. Parking would be available for 235-245 cars.
Groundbreaking for the project occurred on January 22, 1965. It was anticipated the project would take about 6 months to complete. A large "Help Wanted" display ad appeared in the Holyoke Transcript on June 26, 1965, for personal interviews to be conducted on June 29 and 30. On the first day, over 200 applicants appeared seeking various positions. It was anticipated that a similarly sized audience would attend on the second day seeking 1 of the 40 openings.
The grand opening celebration was held on July 21, 1965. With the opening of the Holyoke store, the chain had 19 supermarkets: 5 in Massachusetts and 14 in Connecticut. Two additional stores would open in Connecticut in September 1965, with several more under consideration. The stores hoped to combine the efficiency of a supermarket with the personal customer service customers enjoyed in a corner grocery store.
Charles Block acquired the remaining shares of Popular Markets, Inc., 3 years after Mr. Spitzler died in 1963, becoming the sole owner in 1966. At the time, there were 20 supermarkets in the chain. The five in Massachusetts included Holyoke, Chicopee, Springfield, Longmeadow and East Longmeadow.
In 1966, the supermarket was granted a liquor license in the possession of the City of Holyoke, and previously held by the former Grower's Outlet at 503-511 Dwight Street.
In November 1971, it was reported that an employee of the market was to purchase the supermarket and reopen as Gerry's Supermarket on January 1, 1972. The sale did not materialize, and corporate officials announced on February 15, 1972, that the underperforming Holyoke supermarket would soon close.
There were two additional supermarket ventures at this location, including Top Hat Supermarket from February 23, 1972, to 1974, and Trade & Save Supermarket from July 17, 1974, to 1976.
Citations:
Newspapers.com (paid subscription): Citations: Holyoke (Massachusetts) Transcript & Transcript-Telegram; publication dates and pages are shown.
Hampden County Registry of Deeds, Springfield, Massachusetts
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