Wegmans scrapped plans for a Cary store at Fenton. Now the landlord is suing.
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Wegmans was going to build a store at Fenton but scrapped plans in March 2021.
- Fenton alleges that Wegmans owes over $333K in unpaid rent from April, May.
- Wegmans says Fenton has not tried to find another tenant, so it owes no unpaid rent.
The landlord of Cary’s Fenton development claims Wegmans failed to pay rent in April and May and now owes the company nearly a half million dollars, in a lawsuit filed in federal court in June.
But in a response to the complaint, Wegmans argues the landlord breached contract when it did not help the New York grocer find a new tenant or end the lease when it decided not to move in.
The company that developed and manages Fenton, USEF HCG Fenton LLC, originally filed its lawsuit against Wegmans in Wake County on May 26. It refiled the lawsuit in federal court on June 26 because federal law requires a dispute over $75,000 to be heard in a federal district court. The Triangle Business Journal first reported the lawsuit.
Wegmans agreed to a 20-year lease at Fenton in September 2016, the lawsuit states. Per the lease, the New York grocer was set to move in and start paying $125,000 in rent in March 2022. But Wegmans scrapped its plans for a Fenton store in March 2021, The News & Observer previously reported.
“Online shopping has grown tremendously, fueled in part by COVID-19, enabling us to serve customers in a much greater radius than was originally projected,” the company said in a 2021 statement to The N&O. “This has allowed us to plan our growth differently than we have in the past. As a result, we have decided not to move forward with the proposed Cary, NC location.”
On Feb. 20, 2026, Wegmans wrote in a letter to Fenton that it would either assign the lease to another tenant or terminate the lease and stop paying rent after March, the lawsuit states.
Wegmans did not pay rent in April and May, totaling $333,201.83, according to the lawsuit.
Fenton argues rent payments have continued to accrue, now totaling $479,714.52, according to a July 2 court filing by Wegmans.
Fenton is seeking the unpaid rent and at least $25,000 in damages, the lawsuit states.
Wegmans’ response
In its July 2 response to Fenton’s complaint, Wegmans acknowledged it had not paid rent for April and May but denied that it had a responsibility to pay.
In a separate court filing the same day, Wegmans asked to deposit “allegedly past due rent, plus future rental payments” into a court registry until the lawsuit is resolved.
Wegmans canceled its plans to open a Fenton store due to “changed economic conditions,” the response stated. It then reached out to the company to find a different tenant or terminate the lease.
But Fenton “refused to engage meaningfully in these discussions, despite multiple good faith attempts by Wegmans to reach a solution that was mutually beneficial for both parties,” Wegmans stated in its answer.
So Wegmans sent its letter announcing its intent to either terminate the lease or find another tenant on Feb 20., “while reiterating its willingness to engage in a dialogue that would lead to a mutually acceptable agreement to end the Lease,” the answer stated.
“To the extent Landlord suffered any damages,” Wegmans wrote in its answer, “they were caused by Landlord’s own failure to mitigate those damages.”
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