After being a staple of the Jasper Place area for more than 70 years, Ben’s Meat will be moving shop this summer. On Oct. 13, 1953, Ben van Soest opened Ben’s Meat in the then-town of Jasper Place three years after arriving in Canada from Holland with his wife Lenie. Their grandson, David van Leeuwen, now runs Ben’s Meat and Deli, which specialises in European sausage and cheese, in the same location it opened nearly 72 years ago. The store isn’t planning to celebrate 72 years at its current location though, it’s planning to relocate to a new location in the west end. “It’s double the space that we have now,” said van Leeuwen. “I’m going to have staff space upstairs which I’m looking forward to, getting everybody out of my office, and it has a loading dock, it has receiving doors, it’s got parking for the whole building.” The new location will have a sitting area, which the current location had before COVID-19, a gluten-free cafe, expanded gluten-free options and they’ll also be selling smokers and barbecues. He added the new location will have a gluten-free production room and 500 square feet of freezer space, up from the 126 square feet the current location has.. The opportunity to grow the business is van Leeuwen’s dream, so he isn’t upset about leaving the current location behind. “We do have a few local people in the neighborhood that are going to be sad to see us go because we are within walking distance for them, but 99 per cent of our customers are giving great feedback, that they’re looking forward to and they’re excited about the new space and it’s more accessible,” said van Leeuwen The current location has its share of troubles, something that contributed to the decision to move. “The biggest impact was the space and the parking, but this neighborhood has been very hard to operate in lately,” van Leeuwen said. “It’s difficult right now, with the road closures, I’m hearing from customers having a hard time accessing us. “The neighborhood itself is getting a little rougher and some people don’t feel safe now.” He hopes to have the new location at 10516 184 St. open around June 10. With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Amanda Anderson
