Bay Ridge shoppers wondering what would become of the longtime Century 21 site finally have an answer, and it comes with grocery bags.
Trader Joe’s is set to open at the former department store property on 86th Street, anchoring a new retail development called Century Marketplace.
Councilmember Kayla Santosuosso confirmed the California-based grocery chain as the development’s primary tenant in a video announcement posted Sunday, ending years of speculation over the future of the property. An opening date has not yet been announced.
The site has remained vacant since Century 21 filed for bankruptcy in 2020.
MCB Real Estate and Osiris Ventures purchased the property for $47.5 million in 2025, with plans to transform it into a 95,000-square-foot retail complex. Plans call for a two-story structure with an interior atrium facing 86th Street.
“The plan has always been to bring 86th St. back bigger and better than ever, and my team and I have been working around the clock behind the scenes to make that happen,” Santosuosso said in a statement provided by the Brooklyn Paper.
Santosuosso also said the arrival of the national grocery chain could bring more customers to independent businesses along Third and Fifth avenues.
She credited Osiris Ventures and former Councilmember Justin Brannan with helping bring Trader Joe’s to the development.