The redevelopment of the Drexeline Shopping Center, now known as the Drexeline Town Center, officially kicked off Wednesday with a groundbreaking ceremony, writes Pete Bannan for the Daily Times.

The work brings a 50% bigger ShopRite with wider aisles and up-to-date selections. It is slated to open in the fall of 2023. The current store will stay open during construction.

 Joining it is a new Wawa, 172 market-rate apartments, the return of PNC Bank, 20,000 square feet of other retail and a 120,000 square-foot self-storage facility.

 “This groundbreaking is a new phase in a very extended effort to turn this project into a first-class town center, a mixed-use development,” said Developer David Bramble, co-founder and Managing Partner of MCB Real Estate. “This community deserves that development. This is a really important gateway to Upper Darby and we are going to try to bring a really sexy first-class project here.”

The project reduces stormwater runoff while increasing square-footage from 260,000 square feet to 320,000. It includes a multi-use trail and access to a SEPTA trolley station on site.

The renovations bring the promise of new jobs, shopping opportunities and tax revenue, says Upper Darby Mayor Barbarann Keffer.

Read more at the Daily Times about the Drexeline redevelopment.

Here’s a CBS 3 news report on the redevelopment at Drexeline.