The Roundy Center
Then & Now
L loyd Roundy, founder of Food Land Grocery, grew up in the Woodbine area. After being discharged from the Army in the 40s, he moved back to Woodbine and worked for his brother, Harold, "Runt" Roundy at The Blue Room, a tavern in downtown Woodbine.
A fter operating out of a few small storefronts, in 1952 Lloyd and wife, Bonnie, purchased the former site of the city jail. (The old City Hall & Station is west across the alley from this building.)
T he Roundys built this modern-styled structure with an iconic 1950s grocery store "billboard" at the front clipped entrance. The neon Food Land sign was relocated when a larger store was built in 1968. The neon sign still lights up the corner of 5th & Walker.
T he new building contained a large basement for storage and a conveyor-belt system to carry items from the basement to the first floor. It housed all of the latest grocery technology - including a walk-in cooler, a ten-foot meat counter, and the latest in tenderizing equipment. Even the "big city" method of aisles and carts were added, making the grocery store the first in the county to feature self-service shopping.
A fter 1969, the building was used as Food Land storage until the 1980s. Other businesses in the building leased space during the next forty years, including a bar & restaurant, a community center, a print shop, and Shaw's Lunch Counter in the rear of the building.
T he Food Land Owl is an original store logo, and a version is still used today.
