Meijer to open July 9

Meijer will open a new 155,000-square-foot supercenter store on July 9 in Lorain.

Grand Rapids, Mich.-based retail company confirmed the opening date in a brief announcement on June 26.

“The new stores will feature fresh grocery, fresh bakery, fresh meat and deli counters, as well as a garden center,” according to Meijer in the announcement. “Other departments will include a pharmacy, electronics, toys, sports and apparel.”

The store will be at 5350 Leavitt Road. It replaces the former Super K, which closed and was demolished.

Lorain Mayor Jack Bradley welcomed the company.

“I believe that the Meijer store is going to be a good partner in the city of Lorain,” Bradley said.

Meijer had not yet opened in the city, but donated $5,000 toward the program that created banners hung upon city utility poles to honor Lorain High School graduates, he said.

“So that shows that they are interested in being involved in the community and assisting when asked,” Bradley said. “Those are the kind of partners we want in the city of Lorain.”

Once the former Super K closed, that building might have sat empty for years, Bradley said.

Leavitt Road, which also is state Route 58, has become a major retail corridor for Lorain’s west side and Amherst, which sits to the southwest.

Bradley acknowledged Lorain City Council members, city staff and residents have seen an increase in traffic there.

But the corner of Leavitt and Cooper Foster Park roads had Super K as a tenant for years, so people were accustomed to the traffic volume.

The presence of Meijer also could attract regional and national retail stores to Lorain, Bradley said.

“I’m glad to see that they’re getting ready to open,” he said. “We lost the Super Kmart and to have abandoned property redeveloped, and maybe some future development over there, this is going to be a good thing for the city of Lorain and the surrounding areas.”

The company acknowledged there will be health precautions recommended to slow the spread of the novel coronavirus.

Each new store will follow mandated state requirements and guidelines regarding social distancing, according to the company.

Inside stores, safety decals will be on the floor where customers typically gather and protective plastic shields are at every checkout station.

Additionally, team members receive daily health screenings and temperature checks. Employees and customers are recommended to wear masks.

The new Meijer store in Lorain will join a new one in Brimfield Township. Meijer opened stores last year in Avon, Mentor and Stow and has operated a store Perkins Township, outside Sandusky, for years.