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Building that Housed the Former A&P Supermarket in Downtown Boone Gets Torn Down

By Nathan Ham

A building that stood in downtown Boone since 1960 was recently demolished to make way for what appears to be a new construction project. 

According to Eric Plaag of the Watauga County Historical Society, the building at the intersection of King Street and Water Street was originally constructed in 1960 and was home to the A&P Supermarket. At the time, A&P was the largest chain of supermarkets in the country and opened this 9,000-square-foot location downtown in September of that year. At the time, the store claimed to have nearly 5,000 different name-brand items for shoppers to purchase. 

In later years, a portion of the building became a bank with a drive-thru teller window located on the east side of the building. The building was also used by many restaurants throughout the years, most recently the home of Cilantro’s Mexican Grill & Cantina before closing down. The building was bought by Wilcox & Wright, LLC in the late 1990s. 

The exact future of this downtown location is a bit unknown at this point. Lane Moody, the Downtown Development Coordinator for the Town of Boone, told the High Country Press that there was going to be a hotel constructed in that empty space. After reaching out to the planning and inspections department for the town, there is currently no building permit on file for that location, according to Town of Boone Chief Building Inspector Stacey Miller.