Kitimat’s SuperValu grocery store will likely be closing their doors on June 14.
Store manager Josh Gallant said that he received notice from his superiors yesterday evening that an agreement could not be made on the store’s lease. Loblaw leases the space from a Vancouver-based building owner.
Gallant said the decision will affect about 35 staff members and three managers.
“A lot of them are full time,” he said, adding that some of the cashiers have been working there almost 30 years. “The owners of the building didn’t accept the contract from Loblaws and make a long story short, that’s why we’re closing the doors on June 14. That’s all I know, that’s what I was told last night at seven o’clock.”
Building owner Dick Leung told the Sentinel that he hadn’t been informed the latest lease offer had been rejected but believes if store staff are being informed on the closure it is likely the case.
“It’s not confirmed yet. It might be,” said Leung. “It’s not finalized yet.”
He said the last lease was a five year term.
“If they told the manager they’re closing it down, I think it might be final,” he said.
He said there is another grocery store that may be interested in the space but he could not disclose more information than that.
Gallant said the company has leased the space since 1961.
Loblaw Companies includes the SuperValu brand, Wholesale Club and Extra Foods, among many others.
