A discount grocery chain is moving into the building that Rite Aid left behind in Silverton, turning a vacant pharmacy at 626 McClaine St. into the town’s newest place to shop for bargain groceries. Grocery Outlet plans to debut the new store on August 20, according to a spokesperson, occupying the former Rite Aid pharmacy at the corner of McClaine and C streets.
The Silverton location will be run by local operators Ashley Landis and Jairy Weycker, who plan to mark the grand opening with a $1,000 donation to the Silver Family Falls YMCA, according to The Oregonian/OregonLive. The City of Silverton’s business licensing registry listed Silverton Grocery Outlet at that address as an active retail grocery business under licensee Ashley Landis as of July 2026, according to the City of Silverton. Municipal records also show the city noted in a November 2025 monthly report that Grocery Outlet had already submitted building permits to convert the shuttered pharmacy into a discount grocery store, per the city’s report.
Rite Aid’s Collapse Left the Building Empty
The Silverton store sat vacant after Rite Aid shuttered all of its remaining pharmacy locations last fall, per the OregonLive report. That closure was part of a larger unraveling: Rite Aid’s bankruptcy proceedings in 2025 led to court-approved closures or pharmacy file transfers across more than 30 Oregon locations, including its Silverton store, according to the Seaside Signal. Rite Aid had operated roughly 50 stores across Oregon before its second bankruptcy filing.
Nationally, the damage was even steeper. After two Chapter 11 filings in less than two years, Rite Aid liquidated its remaining assets and shut down its final retail locations by October 2025, as reported by CBS News. The chain once operated more than 5,000 stores nationwide at its peak, leaving behind a wave of empty suburban boxes now being scooped up by discount and off-price retailers from coast to coast — including a former Napa Rite Aid and similar backfills covered by Hoodline in recent months.
Grand Opening Perks and Giveaways
Grocery Outlet is headquartered in California and keeps prices low by buying overstock and closeout goods in bulk, according to the company’s website. To mark the Silverton debut, the first 100 customers will receive a mystery Bliss Bucks gift card worth up to $500, per the OregonLive report. Shoppers during the store’s first week will also get reusable bags while supplies last, and customers can enter to win $1,000 in free groceries through September 18…