Whole Foods Market Closes Deal for Avon Location

Whole Foods Market has closed its deal for a site in Avon, with the grocery store slated to open in summer 2028 alongside the Skjól condominium project.

Aspen —Whole Foods Market will open in Avon in summer 2028. The deal is closed.

Traer Creek and Jasmine Development announced the transaction Monday. The grocer will occupy roughly 28,500 square feet on the east side of town. It won’t stand alone. The site includes between 7,500 and 12,500 square feet of additional retail space.

Behind the grocery sits the Skjól. It’s a 122-unit high-end condominium project. Phase I opens fall 2028. Phase II follows in spring 2029.

This isn’t a quick flip. Whole Foods first approached Traer Creek in 2020. They wanted the Eagle County location. The next few years were spent on planning and engineering. Whole Foods agreed to add underground structured parking. They worked with the town on site planning.

Marcus Lindholm, president of Jasmine, called it discipline. He said the easy move would have been to close the deal years ago. They could have put the store in the northwest corner. They could have dealt with the planning later.

They didn’t.

“We chose what we saw as the only path,” Lindholm said. “Going back to the drawing board on the master plan, working through the entitlements, and fitting Whole Foods into a well thought through master plan that we hope can bring a new synergy and buzz to the Town and the Vail Valley.”

The rezone application took two years. It modified the village’s entitlements. That process cleared the way for the Whole Foods transaction. It also set the stage for future phases.

Michael Lindholm with Traer Creek sees this as a shift in the valley’s center. He called the grocery anchor a “new center of gravity.” It applies to the Town of Avon and the wider valley.

Kensington and Jasmine are moving straight into planning the downtown mixed-use vision. They’ve spent four years updating the master plan. Michael Lindholm credited the town’s partnership. He named Town Manager Eric Heil. He named the town staff. He named Mayor Underwood and the rest of Town Council.

“Trust and cooperation,” he said. “That includes the Town Manager, Eric Heil, the Town staff, and Mayor Underwood and the rest of Town Council.”

The Skjól aims to complement the grocery. It promises an amenity-rich environment. The grocery anchor makes it possible.

Locals will see construction crews soon. The timeline is tight. Whole Foods opens summer 2028. Skjól Phase I starts that fall. Phase II hits the ground running in spring 2029.

The property sits in the heart of Avon. It’s walkable. Lindholm described it as a mix of local and regional retail, dining, residential, and public gathering spaces.

No more guessing games. The deal is done. The land is committed. The town got its grocer. The developers got their density.

The question now is execution. Can they keep the timeline? Can the town manage the influx of high-end units?

The Vail Daily reported the details. The announcement came Monday.

Read that again. Summer 2028. That’s less than four years away.