PHOTO VIA KROGER FACEBOOK PAGE
We told you HERE in mid-November that Kroger (Website) will shut down its large automated fulfillment center in Groveland early next year, ending its Central Florida delivery operations and leaving more than a thousand workers facing job losses. The company announced that the facility, which opened only a few years ago as part of Kroger’s push into e-commerce, will close in January 2026 as the grocer shifts away from its automated warehouse model.
The closure will have an immediate effect on Lake County’s workforce. Estimates suggest that between 1,000 and 1,400 employees will be impacted, and small businesses near the site say they expect to feel the loss of daily foot traffic and local spending. Local leaders have reacted sharply: the facility was built with the help of more than $1.3 million in combined city and county economic incentives tied to job creation and sustained investment. With Kroger exiting years earlier than promised, Lake County commissioners have begun the process of rescinding those incentives and seeking repayment.
A portion of the recouped funding, roughly $400,000, is earmarked for job-training and placement support in partnership with CareerSource Central Florida, Lake Technical College, and Lake-Sumter State College. Officials say the goal is to ease the transition for displaced workers while pursuing all available avenues to recover taxpayer dollars.
