MetroWest Village: The Publix-Anchored Heart of MetroWest Orlando
The everyday plaza at Hiawassee and Westpointe — with a brand-new Publix and the tenants locals actually use
MetroWest Village is a Publix-anchored shopping center located at 2435 S. Hiawassee Road, Orlando, FL 32835, at the intersection of Hiawassee Road and Westpointe Boulevard. The center totals approximately 106,857 square feet and is owned by Phillips Edison & Company. The original 1994 Publix was demolished in 2024 and replaced with a new prototype store of approximately 48,387 square feet. Other tenants include Marco's Pizza, Subway, Pet Supermarket, and Kome Japanese & Sushi Bar. The intersection sees more than 33,851 vehicles per day, with a population of roughly 104,500 within a three-mile radius.
If you live in MetroWest, odds are you've pulled into MetroWest Village in the last week. It's the Publix plaza on Hiawassee — where you grab a sub on the way home, pick up dog food, or run in for the one ingredient you forgot. It's not glamorous, and it's not trying to be. That's kind of the whole point: in a metro where "running to the store" can eat an hour, this is the rare neighborhood center that actually does its job.
The Quick Facts
MetroWest Village sits at 2435 S. Hiawassee Road, right at the corner of Hiawassee and Westpointe Boulevard. The center totals around 106,857 square feet and is owned by Phillips Edison & Company, a publicly traded REIT that specializes in grocery-anchored shopping centers across the country. It's one of roughly a dozen Central Florida properties in their portfolio.
The intersection itself sees more than 33,851 vehicles a day, and there are roughly 104,500 people living within a three-mile radius. Translation: this plaza has a built-in customer base that doesn't need to drive far, which is exactly why Publix wanted to plant a new store here.
The Brand-New Publix Is the Headline
The Publix at MetroWest Village has been a fixture since 1994 — which, in MetroWest years, is essentially "since the beginning." The original community started taking shape in the 1980s, and the Publix arrived as the neighborhood filled in.
But in 2024, Phillips Edison demolished the original store and built a new one in its place. According to permits reported by GrowthSpotter, the replacement is a current Publix prototype design, approximately 48,387 square feet — about 1,000 square feet smaller than the old one, but with all the modern store layout upgrades. Wider aisles, bigger deli, the updated produce setup, the works.
If you've only known the old store, the new one is a noticeable upgrade. If you're moving into MetroWest, you're inheriting a Publix that's essentially brand-new — which is a quiet quality-of-life win that doesn't usually make it into neighborhood marketing.
Who Else Is in the Plaza
Beyond the anchor, MetroWest Village runs the standard neighborhood-center tenant mix, with a few worth singling out:
- Marco's Pizza — your reliable Friday-night-takeout option, right in the strip
- Subway — the grab-a-quick-lunch slot every Publix center seems to have
- Pet Supermarket — convenient enough that you'll find yourself there instead of the bigger box stores
- Kome Japanese & Sushi Bar — sushi and hibachi at 2407 S. Hiawassee, in the same complex
- Plus a rotating mix of services — nail salons, dry cleaners, small-shop tenants
It's not the place you go for a destination dinner. For that, MetroWest has options like Teak Neighborhood Grill nearby, plus a deeper bench across the broader MetroWest restaurants scene. MetroWest Village is the everyday plaza — the one that handles the boring-but-essential stuff so you don't have to drive to Mall at Millenia or the bigger Kirkman Road centers for a gallon of milk.
Why a Plaza Like This Actually Matters
MetroWest is a 1,805-acre master-planned community designed in the 1980s to be a place where you could live, work, and shop without constantly leaving. A grocery-anchored center right in the middle of the neighborhood is a big reason that's still true. Compare it to plenty of newer Central Florida suburbs where the "neighborhood grocery store" is actually a 12-minute drive across a six-lane road — convenience is underrated until you don't have it.
It also matters that Phillips Edison was willing to invest in a new Publix here. Grocery REITs don't tear down working stores on a whim — they do it when the demographics justify a long-term bet on the area. That rebuild is essentially a vote of confidence in MetroWest from a company that does this for a living.
Getting There and Parking
MetroWest Village is on the east side of South Hiawassee Road, just south of Old Winter Garden Road. If you're coming from anywhere inside MetroWest, you're almost certainly already on Hiawassee — it's the main spine running through the neighborhood.
From outside the community, the easiest approaches are off the SR 429 / Western Beltway using the Old Winter Garden Road exit, or coming over from Kirkman Road via Raleigh Street or Metropolis Way. From Dr. Phillips, Apopka-Vineland Road runs north straight to the area. From Windermere, you're a quick hop east on Conroy-Windermere.
Parking is the standard suburban-grocery-anchor setup — large surface lot, plenty of spaces, occasionally tight right before dinner on a Sunday. No paid parking, no garage, no nonsense.
The Honest Pros and Cons
Pros
- Brand-new Publix prototype store with modern layout (opened post-2024 rebuild)
- Central location inside MetroWest — most residents are 5 minutes or less away
- Solid everyday tenant mix (grocery, pizza, sub shop, pet supplies, sushi)
- Easy access from SR 429 and Kirkman Road for non-residents
- Plenty of surface parking
Cons
- It's a functional neighborhood plaza, not a destination — no big-box anchors, no entertainment, no sit-down dining of note inside the center
- Hiawassee Road traffic at peak times can make the left turn out of the lot a small adventure
- For broader retail variety, you'll still drive to The Mall at Millenia or one of the Kirkman corridor centers
How It Fits With the Rest of MetroWest Shopping
MetroWest Village isn't the only retail in the neighborhood — it's the grocery-anchored core. The bigger picture includes the Walmart on MetroWest Boulevard, the Winn-Dixie at 1401 S. Hiawassee, the smaller MetroWest Shoppes on Raleigh Street, and the dining and service mix tucked into Veranda Park near the golf course.
Add in everything along the Kirkman Road corridor — restaurants, big-box stores, and the entrance to Universal — and a MetroWest resident can realistically handle 95% of weekly errands without ever crossing John Young Parkway. For more on the full picture, check our MetroWest shopping guide and the MetroWest grocery stores list.
What the Locals Know
MetroWest Village isn't where you take out-of-town visitors. It's where you handle Tuesday — and after the 2024 Publix rebuild, it's doing that job better than it has in three decades. The grocery anchor is new, the ownership is committed to the location, and the everyday tenant mix covers what you actually need. That's not flashy, but it's the kind of thing you only notice when it isn't there.
The local tip: the new Publix is noticeably less crowded mid-morning on weekdays than after 4 p.m. or anytime on weekends. The parking lot's south side stays emptier than the front row near the doors.
For shopping center details, leasing information, and tenant updates, visit MetroWest Village on the Phillips Edison website.
Thinking about moving to MetroWest or curious about what daily life actually looks like here? Browse MetroWest homes for sale or contact us for a straight-up take on the neighborhood from people who work it every day. 🛒
