In the thirty or so years our family has lived in metro Atlanta, I've had a few opportunities to drive past the Kroger on Ponce de Leon Avenue between North Avenue at Somerset Place. It's known as Murder Kroger. The site is a few blocks from the Carter Center and a ten minute walk from Piedmont Park and the tony Mid-Town district on Peachtree Street.
The store opened in the mid-'80's in response to tax incentives and a vast urban renewal project including new residential space in a former Ford Motor plant. Over its near thirty year history the neighborhood has witnessed increasing gentrification along with new shops, bars, restaurants ,and recreational opportunities on the recently opened Atlanta Beltline Trail. That seems to have made little difference in one statistic; that is, crime. And the crime of interest is murder. The first killing occurred in the parking lot in 1991. A murder victim was found locked inside a car in the parking lot in 2002. Another victim was found just off the parking lot in 2012. Four days ago, a man was killed next to the building confronting thieves breaking into his car. It's not clear precisely when the moniker, "Murder Kroger" came about, but it has been well-earned at a tragic cost. And it is a tragedy that a place can be known by such a name. It is as if we have come to accept Murder Kroger as a norm. It does, after all, have a Facebook page , fan club, tee-shirt, Twitter account (posted by Freddy Kroger), and a song:
Down on Ponce where the call girls roam
and the homeless trannies won't leave you alone
just a block or so past the Clermont Lounge
sits the deadliest grocery store in town
it's a good place to go if you wanna buy crack
but if you go there for groceries you may never come back
Its murder
Murder Kroger
Its murder
Murder Kroger
It's a grocery store with a deadly twist
You'll get shot in the head for your shopping list
Murder Kroger
It's the worst place to shop in all of Atlanta
you could lose your life over a twelve pack of Fanta
if you leave your car don't forget your mace
unless you wanna get stabbed in the face
by an angry bum with a switchblade knife
I hope those hot pockets were worth your life
It's murder
Murder Kroger
Murder
Murder Kroger
The odds are good you won't come back alive
and your friends will all hear about it on Fox 5
Murder Kroger
It's Murder Kroger
It's Murder Kroger
Murder Kroger
It's a grocery store with a deadly twist
You'll get shot in the head for your shopping list
It's Murder Kroger
It's Murder Kroger
Murder Kroger
The odds are good you won't come back alive
and your friends will all hear about it on Fox 5
Murder Kroger
Murder Kroger has tried to rebrand itself as the Beltline Kroger. It no longer sits in a "bad" neighborhood but murder was there in 1991 and it's there today. I don't know if the store will ever overcome it's past. I don't fully know what such a store and its culture says about us. I do know with certainty it is a well-known landmark, quirky, bizarre, and somewhat risky.
The odds are good you won't come back alive
and your friends will all hear about it on Fox 5
Murder Kroger
It's Murder Kroger
It's Murder Kroger
Murder Kroger
It's a grocery store with a deadly twist
You'll get shot in the head for your shopping list
It's Murder Kroger
It's Murder Kroger
Murder Kroger
The odds are good you won't come back alive
and your friends will all hear about it on Fox 5
Murder Kroger
Murder Kroger has tried to rebrand itself as the Beltline Kroger. It no longer sits in a "bad" neighborhood but murder was there in 1991 and it's there today. I don't know if the store will ever overcome it's past. I don't fully know what such a store and its culture says about us. I do know with certainty it is a well-known landmark, quirky, bizarre, and somewhat risky.
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