Dallas Resident Campaigns for H-E-B Store in His Neighborhood

Fredrick Terry has been pushing for the San Antonio-based grocery chain to open a location in the underserved Oak Cliff area.

Published on Feb. 9, 2026

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Fredrick Terry, a Dallas resident, has been on a campaign since 2023 to bring an H-E-B grocery store to his Oak Cliff neighborhood, which he says has been a food desert. Despite H-E-B expanding into the North Texas region in recent years, the chain has not opened any stores within the city of Dallas itself, and Terry is determined to find out why.

Why it matters

Terry's campaign highlights the issue of food deserts in urban areas and the importance of access to affordable, healthy food options for local communities. As a major Texas-based grocery chain, H-E-B's expansion decisions have a significant impact on the neighborhoods they choose to serve.

The details

Terry, who previously lived in Houston where he had multiple H-E-B stores within a short distance, says his Oak Cliff neighborhood only has one Kroger serving the area. He has reached out to local politicians and H-E-B's communications team, but has not received a satisfactory explanation for why the chain has not opened a store in Dallas despite owning multiple tracts of land. H-E-B has cited the challenge of finding 20-22 acre lots in the city as a barrier, but Terry points out that the chain's smallest store in Texas is only 12,000 square feet.

  • Terry started his campaign to bring an H-E-B to Oak Cliff in 2023.
  • In November 2025, Terry rented a mobile billboard with a QR code to his website laying out his case.
  • In December 2025, H-E-B passed an important zoning hurdle for a store planned at I-635 and Hillcrest Road within the Dallas city limits, though some residents still oppose it.

The players

Fredrick Terry

A 59-year-old Dallas resident who has been campaigning since 2023 to bring an H-E-B grocery store to the underserved Oak Cliff neighborhood where he lives.

H-E-B

A major Texas-based grocery chain that has been expanding into the North Texas region in recent years, but has not yet opened any stores within the city of Dallas itself.

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What they’re saying

“You're either in a grocery business, or you're land speculators. And here they appear to be land speculators.”

— Fredrick Terry (MySA)

“The young people that are moving into this neighborhood, they're really only concerned about ordering food to be delivered, and they're just not shopping.”

— Local Politician (MySA)

“I love H-E-B — don't get me wrong — and I would never tell anyone not to shop there. We're not trying to boycott H-E-B or anything like that, but I'm not going to drive 60 miles when I've got property right down the street from me that you can build a perfectly good H-E-B market there.”

— Fredrick Terry (MySA)

What’s next

H-E-B has a store within Dallas city limits planned for I-635 and Hillcrest Road, which passed an important zoning hurdle in December 2025, though some residents still oppose it on potential congestion issues.

The takeaway

Fredrick Terry's campaign highlights the ongoing challenges of food deserts in urban areas and the importance of major grocery chains like H-E-B making strategic decisions to serve all neighborhoods, not just the most profitable ones. His efforts demonstrate the power of community advocacy to push for greater access to healthy, affordable food options.