A small crowd gathered for the opening ceremonies outside the new Interbay Whole Foods at 8 a.m. this morning. Then the doors were open and shoppers were invited inside.

Many in the crowd were connected to the store and there was no rush of shoppers waiting to get inside.  A few folks did grab shopping carts and began to load up. The Interbay Whole Foods employs about 140 people who seemed eager to show off their new store to shoppers.

The shopping complex anchored by Whole Foods has slowly filled up with other retail outlets. The Magic Dragon Chinese Restaurant is now open along with Peet’s Coffee and Tea, Subway and a dry cleaner.

Whole Foods decided to build a smaller store in the Interbay Urban Center than originally planned and the space next door is still available for lease.

A large crowd showed up at the new Whole Foods’ house warming party this evening for free food and drink in advance of the store’s grand opening tomorrow, Tuesday, October 13.

The doors will open officially at 8 a.m. tomorrow. The store invited future shoppers in this afternoon to see check out the goods and enjoy free samples.

The company will be continuing its store opening promotions through the day tomorrow: The first 200 customers through the door after opening tomorrow will get a reusable shopping bag.

Today was preview day for the new Whole Foods in Interbay.

The pumpkins are stacked out front, the shelves are stocked, even the cupcakes are frosted and ready for tomorrow’s grand opening.

Vicky Foley, the spokeswoman for Whole Foods, says that this is one of the smaller stores in the Seattle area, but it is full of local products. They have local produce, local wine, lotions by Ballard Organics and sushi made by Blue C.

The Allegro Espresso Bar will open at 7 a.m. each morning and will feature a Kombucha bar brewed by Townshend’s Tea Company in Portland.

Just down the counter and spanning most of the east wall is gelato, a pizzeria station, a burrito bar and sandwich bar followed by a bakery and plenty of gourmet cheese.

There is a separate little room at the front of the store near the espresso bar that is the “community room” that will have free wi-fi.

Forget the traditional ribbon-cutting, tomorrow there will be a “bread-breaking ceremony” at 8 a.m. to officially open the new store.

Whole Foods is having a pre-opening “house warming party” for their new Interbay location on Monday, October 12 from 4-8 p.m. and they’ve invited the surrounding communities to enjoy snacks and live music.

The store will open for shopping on Tuesday, October 13th.

The Interbay Whole Foods is approaching its opening date, now scheduled for one day earlier than previously announced. Originally set to open on October 14, the store will be opening its doors one day early, on Tuesday, October 13.

“Yes we are opening one day early as we are so organized!” said PR representative Vicki Foley.

As you can see from this picture, the store looks pretty much ready to go. The shelves are stocked and everything seems to be in place.  Whole Foods announced in January that the store in the Interbay Retail Center on 15th Ave West would open in December but have since continued to move up the time frame.

Our sister site, Magnolia Voice was the first to report last September that the project at Interbay was stopped when the developer filed suit against Whole Foods for breaching the lease.  The original opening was set for last Thanksgiving.  Peet’s Coffee, Subway and Dry Cleaner have already opened.  The Magic Dragon Chinese Eatery is set to open soon.

The new Whole Food at Interbay, which is set to open October 14, is hiring.

MagnoliaVoice reports the company is looking for team member and leadership positions at the new location. They have both part time and full time positions available in produce, bakery, catering, coffee, meet, seafood, prepared food and specialty and guest services.

Applications are being accepted online. For more information, click here.

According to Whole Foods PR representative Vicki Foley, the national grocer is “on track” to open their Interbay location on October 14. The new Whole Foods will be the “anchor tenant” at the Interbay Urban Center, a new 80,000 retail hub along 15th Avenue W. by Seattle-based real estate company TRF Pacific.

In a press release published by the two companies back in January, Whole Foods Pacific Northwest regional president John Clougher called Interbay and “emerging community,” and explained that the venture would transform the area and benefit Interbay residents, as well as surrounding neighborhoods like Magnolia and Queen Anne.

“15th Avenue is the third most traveled arterial in Seattle. People want to shop and get going to their destination, so this store will cater to good foods on the go,” Clougher said. The Interbay Urban Center would also be located at the intersection of the Burke-Gilman bike trail and next to Metro’s rapid transit bus service that goes along 15th to downtown.

The Interbay Whole Foods will feature an interactive healthy eating center, cooking classes and demonstrations, a coffee shop and a handful of other amenities common in other stores by the Austin, Texas-based grocery chain.

This Whole Foods is finally coming, after a lawsuit with developer TRF Pacific settled earlier this year. So far several smaller retail spaces have been leased: Interbay Cleaners, Subway, Verizon Wireless, The Magic Dragon Chinese Eatery and Peet’s Coffee & Tea.

The project, despite the controversy that has surrounded it over the past year, is supported by many Interbay residents who say it will bring much-needed community development to the neighborhood. Bruce Wynn, executive director of the Interbay Neighborhood Association, writes:

We are completely supportive of the Interbay Urban Center and have had representatives from TRF, the development company of this project, at our INA meetings. Whole Foods is currently interviewing for a community relations rep, and I met with her last week. They intend to reach out to the community as they get closer to opening.

And According to rep Vicki, Whole Foods will continue to expand in the Seattle-area:

After Interbay, we anticipate opening the Fauntleroy Place store at some stage in 2010.

(Thanks to Vicki and MagnoliaVoice for the photos!)

One business is now open in the Whole Foods complex on 15th Ave West and more are on the way.

Subway opened recently and workers there say business is actually pretty good despite the fact anchor tenant Whole Foods won’t open until at least the end of the year. 

Peet’s Coffee and Tea and a dry cleaner are also set to open in the complex soon.

According to a report in the Seattle Times this morning, Whole Foods in the Interbay has settled its lawsuit with developer TRF and will restart its plans to open its Interbay location later this year.  Whole Foods will utilize the 38,000 sq ft. space for its operations and will find a sub-lessor for the other 20,000 sq. ft that had been originally designed for their use.  More information will be posted after the press announcement being held today at the Interbay Urban Center at 11:00 am.

There is a big announcement regarding the the Interbay Urban Center set for Tuesday (Jan 27) at 10a.m. This is the retail center, 1819 15^th Ave. W., Seattle,  where construction stopped on the Whole Foods Market after a battle between the developer and Whole Foods led to a lawsuit.

Now officials of developer TRF Pacific are telling us that they will share future plans for the currently vacent retail center tomorrow but won’t give up any further details until the announcement.

It is a likely bet they have good news to report or they would not be holding a news conference. Speculation is that a deal has been worked out for Whole Foods to decrease the square footage for the store and another retailer will take over the extra space. The fact that they will be unfurling a 16 foot banner at the announcement makes us think that they likely have another retailer on board and hopefully an opening date for Whole Foods.

Our sister site Magnolia Voice was the first to report last September that the Whole Foods project at Interbay was in trouble when TRF filed suit against Whole Foods for breaching the lease. Whole Foods was originally set to open last Thanksgiving but construction on the site stopped completely in September. Two other retailers, Subway and Interbay Cleaners, have space in the center but don’t plan to open until they know what is going on with the main tenants. Pete’s Coffee was also expected to open there.

In a report a few weeks ago, Magnolia Voice reader Adam shared this information in comments:

I also know that Whole Foods will be occupying that space in the smaller format come late summer. I work for another national retailer that has agreed to occupy the 20k or so sq ft that Whole Foods didn’t want. I know that everyone has been tight liped about it all because of thw lawsuit and negotiations. I am hearing that it will all be settled and announced by the end of Jan.

Looks like Mark may be right. We will be at the announcement tomorrow to bring you the latest details.