Kalamata Grocery in Calgary's Beltline neighborhood has been a staple on 11 St. for over 60 years. S.W. The striking dark blue building recently looked like it might be demolished after thieves broke into the building twice within a week.
The windows of Kalamata Grocery in Calgary's Beltline are boarded up after two break-ins at the store.
Drew Stremik/Global News
George Cocos, owner of Kalamata Grocery, which his father first opened, told Global News the break-ins happened quickly.
“They broke in, got in as fast as they could and tried to get everything they could – money – they took my cash register,” Cocos explained. “And in 45-50 seconds? Step back.”
Receive daily national news
Get the day's top news, political, economic and current affairs headlines delivered to your inbox once a day.
Kokos estimates the stolen cash and merchandise, broken windows and new security measures will cost him about $20,000.
“I spent $200 (total) on firewood to cover the windows while I wait for the glass and shutters,” Cocos shared.
Cocos said he believes the increase in incidents is due to an increase in the number of people suffering from homelessness and drug addiction.
“Over the years, the situation has gotten worse and worse,” Cocos noted. “Now with drugs, crack, meth and everything else. You find out it's at this level – there's a lot of it in this park behind my business.”
Over the past five years, commercial break-ins and robberies peaked in 2022 but have been steadily declining since then, according to statistics from the Calgary Police Service's public safety dashboard. However, the figures show an increase of about 4 percent between January and October this year compared with the same period in 2024.
The number of commercial break-ins has been trending downward since 2022, according to the Calgary Police Public Safety Panel.
Global news
“It’s just an ongoing trend in the area,” Cocos said. “People don’t care because they don’t have… any consequences.”
People who frequent the grocery store share their support for local products, bring flowers, and continue to shop there despite the boarded-up windows.
“All kinds of people say, ‘Oh, I’m so sorry! What can I do? “It’s beautiful,” Coconut beamed. “It just shows that so many people really care.”
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
