Ferndale's Valley Grocery closes, faces eviction over nearly $28,000 debt

Ferndale’s main grocery store closed by the middle of the week, leaving the Victorian village without the food stop many residents use for daily errands, prescriptions and quick shopping on Main Street. A three-day notice taped to the front door demanded nearly $28,000 in back payments and warned that the store would face legal proceedings if the bill was not covered by the end of the day.

The notice, signed by Eureka attorney Randall Davis on behalf of the landlord, said the current operators owed $11,430.89 in rent for the previous three months, $9,401.14 for a property tax bill and $7,000 for annual property insurance. It was addressed to Ranjeet Singh, Rajinder Buttar Singh, Monty Walia and RRR&M Corp.

The shutdown landed hard in a town with few close substitutes for a full-service grocery. A local resident said the lights had been out since Tuesday, though a generator was still running behind the building. The phone number listed online for Valley Grocery had also been disconnected, underscoring how abruptly the store went dark for customers who depend on it.

The stakes go beyond one storefront. Valley Grocery has operated at 339 Main Street since 1872, making it one of Ferndale’s oldest continuously used commercial sites. The building also survived and was damaged by both the 1906 earthquake and the 1992 magnitude-7.2 quake, tying the present dispute to more than a century of commercial life in the center of town.

If the closure lasts, Ferndale could lose more than a place to buy milk and produce. The store has been part of the Main Street rhythm that draws foot traffic to nearby businesses and gives older residents, working families and other locals a nearby place to handle basic errands without leaving town. For a community with a small number of local services, the fate of Valley Grocery is not just a landlord-tenant fight. It is a test of how much everyday life can absorb when the town’s grocery anchor goes dark.