Albertsons to Close Nine Stores

MARK HAMSTRA

BOISE, Idaho — Albertsons LLC said last week it plans to close nine stores in Colorado and Florida in the coming months, as well as a distribution center in Colorado.

The stores “had not been profitable for some time,” the company, which is separate from the Albertsons chain owned by Minneapolis-based Supervalu, told SN.

The five Colorado locations — all in the Denver area — are located in Denver, Greenwood Village, Longmont, Arvada and Lafayette. In addition, the company said it would wind down operations at its Aurora, Colo., DC by sometime in November.

It will continue to operate 26 locations in Colorado, and will supply them from its main Southwest Division warehouse in Tolleson, Ariz., where the headquarters for that regional also is located.

Albertsons also said it planned to close four locations in Florida, including its last two stores in the southwestern part of the state. The closings include locations in Brandon Square, Bonita Springs, Estero and Lake Worth. The company notified state authorities that it would end operations at the stores by Oct. 21. About 300 workers at the stores will be affected.

It continues to operate a distribution center in Plant City, Fla., and a regional headquarters office in Lake Mary, Fla. A spokeswoman for the company said it was “looking at a variety of alternatives” to maximize use of the 1-million-plus-square-foot DC, which includes a combination of refrigerated, dry and frozen space.

“We are not necessarily looking to sell it, because we still have stores there, but are seeking someone to buy or lease a portion of the space,” the spokeswoman told SN.

Last year, the chain sold 49 of its locations in Florida to Lakeland, Fla.-based Publix Super Markets, and it has since closed a handful of other locations, leaving it with about 30 sites after the latest closing announcements.

The company last month had announced plans to close two Texas locations.