DANIEL ISLAND — The wait is nearly over for Daniel Island residents to get their only grocery store back.

Publix has announced it will open its long-awaited expanded store on Dec. 3 — almost a year-to-date after closing for renovations and leaving the island without a full-service grocery store since.

The Publix Super Market at 162 Seven Farms Drive will welcome customers at 7 a.m.

At full rebuild, the 50,472-square-foot store at Daniel Island Town Center has about 70 percent more shelf space than the 29,618-square-foot shop it replaced.

The previous Publix, which opened in 2002, closed after business on Christmas Eve last year and was demolished soon after — although replacement plans have been in the works since 2017.

The reopening aligns with Publix’s anticipated fourth-quarter

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