GR-area Meijer to get flagship remodel

GRAND RAPIDS TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) - A plan to renovate some Meijer stores -- including one Grand Rapids-area location -- and build new supercenters is expected to create more than 1,500 jobs in Michigan, Indiana and Illinois.

Meijer is investing $160 million to build six new stores and renovate five more in the three states.

Improvements will include better lighting, heating, refrigeration and parking. Changes will also be made to make the stores more energy efficient.

Among the stores getting a facelift is the Knapp's Corner Meijer, 1997 E. Beltline Ave. NE in Grand Rapids Township. It will get a "flagship remodel" that will test designs that may eventually be implemented in other stores.

An aging Meijer store in Lansing will be rebuilt in the next 14 months.

New Meijer stores expected to open in 2013:

• Swartz Creek, Mich.
• Portage, Ind.
• Detroit, Mich.
• Danville, Ill.
• Evergreen Park, Ill.
• Warsaw, Ind.

Each new store is expected to hire 250 full- and part-time employees.

"We are pleased to continue to invest in the Midwest communities that have supported us for so long," Meijer Co-CEO Hank Meijer said in a Wednesday statement. "By keeping prices low and maintaining our focus on customer service, we have been able to continue to grow during a tough economic cycle."

Stores to be remodeled:

• Lansing, Mich. (S. Pennsylvania Road)
• Taylor, Mich.
• Flint, Mich. (Hill Road)
• Springfield, Ill.
• Grand Rapids, Mich. (Knapp's Corner)