BOULDER KING SOOPERS PLANS TO REOPEN IN JANUARY
King Soopers announced Wednesday it will reopen its renovated Table Mesa Drive store Jan. 20.
The south Boulder store was the site of a mass shooting in March where 10 people died. For months, the store has been renovating the site, incorporating feedback from King Soopers employees and community members along the way.
“We’ve always known that Boulder was a special place, but you’ve proven through your empathy, your strength, help and support that Boulder is so much more than a place; it’s more than a community. Boulder is our family,” Joe Kelley, King Soopers president, said. “We know that the building is just part of what makes this store so special and that restoring it is another step in the journey as we continue to rebuild and heal.”
The store’s reopening plays a critical practical role in people’s lives, given that it remains many south Boulder residents’ grocery store of choice and the shopping center has long been a community hub for many, Mayor Aaron Brockett noted. The grocery store has been open for nearly 50 years.
But it’s also of symbolic importance in Boulder’s healing journey.
“It’s an important milestone for the community,” Brockett said.
Boulder Chamber CEO John Tayer agreed.
“King Soopers provides an important service to our community and has been a longtime neighborhood center,” he said. “At the same time, it is a milestone in our community’s recovery from that very traumatic incident.”
Before officially announcing a reopening date, King Soopers in November held hiring events to ensure the store will be staffed sufficiently when it opens. The grocery store has said about 50% of its employees who worked at the store at the time of the shooting intend to return to work there.
The store plans to release more information about the redesign and reopening soon. In previous interviews, King Soopers representatives have said the redesign will include changes to the interior and exterior of the building as well as a redesign of its parking lot.