Rising from the ground

The Montrose Trader Joe’s is starting to come to life, with opening day for the store at Honolulu and Sunset avenues expected before the end of the year.

Late last month construction workers started building the foundation for the store at the western edge of the Montrose Shopping Park. In the fall, workers were surprised to find old walls from the site’s previous incarnation as an auto dealership buried in the soil.

That discovery ended up adding to the site cleanup cost, but did not delay construction, said Emil Tatevosian, deputy director of the city’s community development department.

Trader Joe’s spokeswoman Alison Mochisuki said the store will open later this year.

The city and nearby store owners hope the market opens by October or early November, when the holiday shopping season gets into gear, said Elena Bolbolian, an analyst with Glendale’s community development department.

“That would help the other merchants, too,” she said.