Business

New Walmart set to open Jan. 15

TIM GANNON PHOTO | The new Walmart on Route 58 is scheduled to open Jan. 15 and will include an expanded line of groceries.
TIM GANNON PHOTO | The new Walmart on Route 58 is scheduled to open Jan. 15 and will include an expanded line of groceries.

After years of development, the new Walmart on the western end of Route 58 in Riverhead is slated to open Jan. 15, the company announced Monday morning.

The new store, which will include an expanded line of groceries, is more than 30,000 square feet larger than the existing Walmart located further east, also on Route 58.

“I’m proud to be a part of a team that is strengthening our local economy by bringing more jobs with great career opportunities to the area,” store manager Craig Winkler said in the press release. “I am looking forward to showing area residents our new store and all it has to offer – including convenience and savings for their everyday shopping needs.”

Though originally planned to be a Walmart Supercenter, a Walmart spokeswoman said Monday that the new location will be a regular discount store. Supercenters typically include full-service grocery stores with delis, bakeries and sometimes hair salons.

Plans for the relocated Walmart stem from 2007, the year Riverhead Town approved initial building plans. That approval was challenged in court in two separate lawsuits, both of which were dismissed in May 2009.

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