Executives with Grand Rapids, Mich.-based Meijer Inc. continue to work on plans for a major entry into southeastern Wisconsin.
The company, which has about 200 big box grocery and general merchandise stores in the Midwest, has already submitted plans for stores in Franklin, Wauwatosa, Grafton and Sussex.
In addition the company is considering several sites for a store in the city of Kenosha, said Brian Wilke, development coordinator for the city.
“They have shown some interest in the city,” Wilke said. “They are looking around. We’re meeting with then Thursday to talk about some sites in the city.”
Wilke declined to name specific sites that Meijer is eying and said the company is looking at “several (sites) in the city.”
The company’s plans for Kenosha are for a store of about 175,000 to 200,000 square feet of space, Wilke said.
On Monday, Meijer announced that it has signed an agreement to purchase the 580,000-square-foot Supervalu Midwest Distribution Facility at 7400 95th St. in Pleasant Prairie.
The deal is expected to close in the coming weeks. Meijer said it plans to “upgrade the facility,” but provided no additional details.
The facility will serve the stores that Meijer plans to build in southeastern Wisconsin and could also be used to serve its stores in northeastern Illinois. Meijer has 15 stores in the Chicago area.
Supervalu will continue to operate the facility into early 2013. Meijer said it plans to upgrade the facility, “to make it a resource as Meijer continues to expand throughout the Midwest.”
The Supervalu facility has 225 employees that work in a regional headquarters office for the Eden Prairie, Minn.-based company, and 115 employees in the warehouse. Supervalu plans to use a distribution center in Green Bay to service southern Wisconsin and northern Illinois. The company plans to relocate its regional headquarters in the Kenosha area.
