ESCONDIDO – In BevMo, the city of Escondido sees dollar signs, connoisseurs of alcohol see an Aladdin's cave of intoxicating treasures, and smaller liquor stores sense trouble on the horizon.

JOHN GASTALDO / Union-Tribune Glen Santos (right) worked on stocking the BevMo store that plans to open on West Valley Parkway.

BevMo, the superstore of wine, liquor and beer, is getting ready for its Aug. 1 grand opening at 1346 W. Valley Parkway, in the shopping center where Sports Authority and Staples are.

The 10,000-square-foot store will be the ninth BevMo in the county and the 90th in California and Arizona.

“We know there is a demand that is not met right now,” said David Richards, BevMo's executive vice president.

The new store will offer the same range of goods that other BevMos sell – wine, beer, liquor, cheese, salsa, coffee, tea, crackers, chocolates, wineglasses and more, Richards said.

“We sell wine from $1.99 to $499, and spirits from $3.99 to Rémy Martin Louis XIII at $1,499 a bottle,” he said.

DETAILS Escondido BevMo store What: Superstore for wine, beer and liquor Where: 1346 W. Valley Parkway When: Opens Aug. 1

The store's opening is good news for the city, which is scrounging for extra money to supplement a reduced budget this fiscal year because of the economic slowdown and the real estate market crash. Sales at the Escondido Auto Park have been especially affected.

Jo Ann Case, Escondido's economic development division manager, said the retailer will bring in much-needed sales tax revenues when residents realize they don't have to drive to Carmel Mountain to shop at the BevMo there.

“We want them to shop here. BevMo is a major retail store that has a large customer base and does a great deal of advertising,” Case said in an e-mail response to questions. “We are pleased that we will have a store.

“In this competitive environment, we are doing everything we can to educate Escondido residents to buy locally and keep their sales tax dollars working for them in Escondido.”

Next door to BevMo, employees at Verizon Wireless welcomed their new neighbor. The big red BevMo logo on the storefront has attracted a lot of curious shoppers.

“It brought a lot more people into the parking lot,” said Mike Conroy, a Verizon store clerk. “I'll go over when I turn 21.”

His colleague, Khoi Nguyen, 18, agreed that BevMo is going to be good for business.

“It brings more foot traffic,” Nguyen said. “People who go in may stop by and take a look at our store.”

But across the parking lot in the same shopping center, Valley Market's Sam Gorial, said he expects BevMo to take some of his customers.

“What can I do? I can't do nothing about it,” Gorial said.

Farther away, at the Vinz Wine Bar downtown, bartender Joseph Boston said the new store will not detract from the bar's popularity because Vinz does not sell retail wine.

“BevMo is a good thing,” Boston said. “It gives people more than one place to shop. You have supermarkets – their selection can be sketchy. But BevMo always has a lot of stuff at really good prices.

“They may be the Wal-Mart of the beverage world, but that's where Escondido people are going to go now.”

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Angela Lau: (760) 737-7575; angela.lau@uniontrib.com