EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — Tesco U.S. here said last week that a U.S. District Court ruling will not slow its expansion plans, which call for it to have about 50 Fresh & Easy locations in the Southwest by the end of February.
The 21-store chain was ordered to “take all actions necessary” to bring its 820,000-square-foot Riverside, Calif., warehouse into compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act — a process that reportedly could take up to a year.
In a statement, Tesco said, “While the judge has the authority to order various types of compliance measures, there is nothing in the ruling that suggests any impact on current operations would be required by the court.
“Clearly we have to bring the project into compliance, and the ruling seems to suggest a mitigation plan may be in order. We are reviewing the ruling now to determine how best to accomplish compliance. This kind of litigation is not uncommon in California.”
The ruling came months after a complaint was filed by Health First, an organization made up of citizens who live near the facility that may have backing from the United Food and Commercial Workers Union.
