[Groceteria]

4401 Liberty Ave.

Thoughts on this one? It looks like an old store that may have been retrofitted into some variation on the superstore prototype, thanks to the interior layout and the arches/brown brick on the exterior. Note the blue panels that seem original, above the front window in the interior photo. I'm not sure if that's indicative of anything.

[rich]

It looks like a store remodeled to be like a superstore. The blue upper windows were a common feature of mid-to-late 50s Kroger stores. The area (East Liberty) went through redevelopment in the early 60s. The store may have been relocated from the old East Liberty shopping district in anticipation of this. The lighting seems pre-superstore, as does the small number of registers. How big was the store? Form the pic, I wouldn't be surprised if it was from the common 15,500 sf footprint from the 50s or, at most, the 19,000 sf footprint they used later on. Even in urban locations, purpose built superstores were in the mid 20K range.

[Groceteria]

I'd say about 15K or maybe a little bigger was about it. I got the feeling it may have been expanded slightly on the right (entrance) side.

[Groceteria]

FYI, later research showed that this was indeed a Kroger dating from the late 1950s. Revisiting the thread, I should also make clear that this store is in Bloomfield, not East Liberty (through which Liberty Avenue does not run, oddly enough).

[Toby Radloff]

The inside windows with the green looks a lot like a 1960's pre-superstore Kroger design. It got the superstore facade in the 1970's. Also, this store has barricades in front that prevents the shopping carts from entering the parking lot (or being stolen), which makes me think this store is in a declining area. Still, it's a well preserved example of a 1960's era Kroger.