Developers recently announced that leases have been secured for both the retail store Burlington and a yet-to-be-named national grocery store to move into the former home of Century 21 on 86th Street in Bay Ridge.

Century 21 closed in 2020, and since then, "it's been a blank spot like a broken tooth," according to Bay Ridge resident Andrew Totolis.

The plan is now to make the space into a mixed-use development called "Century Marketplace," with Burlington and the grocery store, which developers said in a press release would be "the first national grocer to serve the immediate Southwest Brooklyn trade area," announced as the first tenants.

"I think we need everything," said Margaret Grogan, who lives in the area. "Right here and now, we're suffering on retail."

"I'm way more for the local stuff," said Totolis, on the idea of more chains coming, "but like maybe more selection, maybe more variety of stuff."

Whatever the grocery store is, it will be just the latest chain in an area where family-owned stores like Mr. Vacuum, which has been around for 40 years, are becoming fewer and fewer.

"To have any type of retail, there'll be an increase of people walking in the neighborhood, and might bring back the neighborhood a little bit," said Joseph Callegari, who owns the store.

As for the supermarket - there are already plenty of grocery stores and places to get produce in the area.

"If you want something Mediterranean, you go to the Mediterranean grocery store, you go to the Greek grocery store, you go to the Arabic grocery store," said Totolis.

There are also full grocery stores already up and running a block and a half in either direction from where the new one will be built, and neither of them are chains.

"Who knows if it's gonna hurt us or not," said Frank Aziz, the manager of one of them, Gourmet Fresh. "We try our best to run our store good and serve the customers, and it is what it is."

"Competition brings business so it's OK by me," added Steve Saglam, who owns Uncle Steve's Marketplace on the other side of the block.

According to the press release, there is room for at least two more anchor stores to lease space at the Century Marketplace.

Multiple sources told News 12 there was no exact timeline for opening.