It’s been awhile since it was officially announced that Trader Joe’s would be coming to Bend, and I have yet to hear anything more about it. Here’s what we know for sure:

• It will be in the Cascade Village Shopping Center
• The new building will replace an existing vacant building adjacent to Food4Less
• It’s to be a 13,000 square foot building

What we don’t know is more tantalizing. I found a comment here that says "a manager at a Portland area store told us that the store would open in Q1 2007 ‘if there are no hangups with the permits.’" And I personally remember a conversation with a Trader Joe’s employee who confided that the reason (up to that point) that TJ’s wasn’t in Bend was because members of the (City or County?) Council had financial stakes in Wild Oats, which would be a big competitor… all hearsay, of course.

Another bit I remember hearing was that it would take two years for TJ’s to open a store here once they got rolling, largely because they would have to build a distribution center as well. Still hearsay.

I filled out the contact form on the Trader Joe’s website asking about the Bend location. No reply yet, but I’ll post it when and if I get one. Has anyone else heard anything new?

Update: Got some more dirt here.