Salem's Market in the Hill District closes indefinitely
At 7 p.m. Sunday, Salem's Market in Pittsburgh's Hill District paused temporarily.
When Salem's opened in February 2024, it helped fill a food desert in the Hill District, but after Sunday, that desert will reappear indefinitely.
It was a tough day for those who waited in their cars for Salem's to open Sunday morning.
"I will miss it," Salem's shopper Ebtehal Badawi said. "I love this space, and Salem is an amazing grocery store."
Some shoppers are concerned that the temporary closure will cut easy access to groceries for those nearby.
"Now, I got to go all the way to the South Side," shopper Devon Kelley said.
Shoppers in the Middle Eastern community also came to rely on here for things like halal meats.
"Up here, you can get everything in one place, like Middle East desserts and dates," Muhammad Javaid, a Salem's shopper, said.
KDKA-TV asked a Salem's spokesperson to confirm that Sunday was the last day before the pause, which they did. KDKA-TV also asked about a potential timeline on a possible reopening.
"This pause will provide us with the opportunity to discuss some options and solutions to talk about what we'll need to avoid a permanent closure and continue serving the Hill District community as best we can," the spokesperson said in a statement.
Mayor Ed Gainey said earlier this week that he is in talks with the store.
"We want to be able to help them any way we can to work things out," he said. "We've already started conversations with them."
The Urban Redevelopment Authority approved $1.4 million to help open Salem's. It's only been about a year since the store opened.
"I was prayer to him. God bless him with the money and the health and what pressure he facing right now," Javaid said.
Ebtehal Badawi helped paint one of the murals here. She's now worried about what the closure means for The Hill.
"Now, they will commute to another grocery," she said. "I don't know where, but I'm sure it will be far away from them."
The URA says it is committed to helping Salem's during this period of transition.
