The new 90,000-square-foot Market Basket slated to anchor the retail plaza at Waltham’s former Polaroid site will open by December after facing a six-week delay, according to company representatives.
The delay came after Market Basket workers and customers in July and August rallied to reinstate ousted CEO Arthur T. Demoulas as head of the grocery chain, staging employee walkouts and customer boycotts that brought the company to a standstill for six weeks. The protests ended in late August as Arthur T. reached a deal to buy the company from rival relatives for more than $1.5 billion.
The impasse affected Market Basket stores regionwide and the new Waltham branch was no exception. Crews had finished erecting the building before the standoff started, but the interior was left untouched as the company languished this summer, said Scott Lang, a lawyer representing the plaza’s developers. The 280,000-square-foot retail project is being developed by 1265 Main LLC and Retail Management and Development Inc.
Lang said developers had hoped to open the new branch as soon as October.
“The six-week period of time that the negotiations were going on . . . that held back not the construction but the interior fit-up, such as bringing in the shelving, refrigeration, and IT for cash registers,” he said.
The company is also now hiring between 400 and 500 employees for the new store, he said.
“This is a tremendous store volume-wise, so staffing will be very substantial,” Lang said. “I think this will be a flagship store for Market Basket.”
Waltham Mayor Jeannette McCarthy, who has been vocal in the past about urging the warring Market Basket factions to finish building the local store, was upbeat last week when talking about its near completion.
“I think it’s wonderful,” she said. “I’m very glad that Arthur T. was able to remain in charge of the corporation. The people of Waltham have been waiting for this to come here for a long time.”
This summer was not the first time the Waltham supermarket was stalled by the internal power struggle between the Demoulases. A dispute last fall between the two sides led to a suspension of payments to contractors and construction workers on the new store, which in turn caused all construction at the plaza to stop for weeks. The development had previously been slated to open in early 2014.
“Usually a Market Basket can go from shovels in the ground to opening within a calendar year,” Lang said.
Meanwhile, Lang said other new Market Baskets slated for Athol, Revere, Middleton, and South Attleboro would also open as planned, although he said time frames for each would differ depending on what building phase each is in.
“I am certain that’s one of the things they [upper management] are focused on right now, to make sure stores are brought into the communities they committed to,” Lang said.
In the 1265 Main St. plaza in Waltham, a number of other retailers and restaurants are scheduled to open by year’s end. A 25,000-square-foot Marshalls will open in early October, according to company representatives.
Lang said Starbucks will be ready by late October, and two restaurants — Jake n Joes Sports Grille and Flank, The New American Beefsteak — will open on a staggered basis. Lang said developers are also negotiating with Not Your Average Joe’s to open a restaurant in the plaza.
“This is the kind of project that builds new infrastructure and brings jobs, tax revenue, and opportunity for consumers and workers,” Lang said. “Market Basket is a key anchor and component, but the entire project provides a tremendous benefit and gain for the area and Waltham.”
A currently unnamed retailer will also take a 2,000-square-foot space between Marshalls and Market Basket, and developers are working with various banks and vendors for the smaller spots, Lang said.
“I think probably by next spring, everything will have taken shape and everyone will be well underway,” he said.
Developers are also in talks with tenants for a 120,000-square-foot office building previously occupied by Polaroid, Lang said. He said the building has been gutted, and developers should finalize tenants by early 2015 and continue any needed renovations in the spring.
In the second phase of the massive project, developers will work with local and state officials to conduct major roadwork in the area to “help open up developable land on both east and west sides of Route 128,” Lang said.
“Phase Two is 1 million square feet in addition to the 280,000,” he said.
Jaclyn Reiss can be reached at jaclyn.reiss@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @JaclynReiss.