Trader Joe's has purchased a former Rite Aid drugstore at 1331 Wilshire Blvd. for $22 million, according to public records and county assessor data.
The Monrovia-based grocer acquired the 17,800-square-foot property in late 2025, paying approximately $1,236 per square foot for the single-story retail building that sits on 1.4 acres with roughly 125 surface parking spaces. The sale was first reported by the LA Times.
The deal aligns with Trader Joe's recent expansion strategy of acquiring vacant drugstore properties across Southern California. The chain surpassed 600 U.S. stores in late 2025 and has actively pursued former Rite Aid sites following that company's second Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in May 2023.
The property faced significant zoning challenges that complicated efforts to attract a new tenant. The site had split zoning, with the front portion facing Wilshire Boulevard designated as Commercial Mixed-Use Boulevard while the rear parking lot carried a residential R2 designation. This created a nonconforming commercial use that hindered leasing and redevelopment efforts.
City planning staff identified the split zoning as a mapping error from earlier zoning updates and recommended correcting it to place the entire retail building under the same commercial designation.
The Santa Monica City Council addressed the issue at a Sept. 30, meeting and approved the zoning correction. The amendment expanded the Mixed-Use Boulevard zoning to cover the entire store structure while keeping the parking lot in the residential zone.
Supporters, including Council Member Jesse Zwick and Mayor Pro Tem Caroline Torosis, argued the change simply corrected a long-standing mapping error. Torosis noted that leaving the property nonconforming was "highly problematic" given the city's 30% retail vacancy rate and that the change was needed "for economic recovery."
Opponents, including Council Members Ellis Raskin and Mayor Lana Negrete, raised concerns about spot zoning and questioned why the issue was handled on a case-by-case basis rather than through citywide policy.
The property owner had argued that without the change, it wouldn’t be possible to find a new use for the property.
The location operated as a Rite Aid pharmacy for many years before closing June 10, 2025. The closure was part of Rite Aid's nationwide restructuring following its bankruptcy filing, which put hundreds of owned and leased stores up for sale.
The property's location on Wilshire Boulevard near 14th Street positions it on a major east-west commercial corridor and adjacent to an existing Von’s store. Trader Joe’s already has three stores in the city on Pico, further up Wilshire and on 5th St.