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Liberty Lake, WA 99019
Phone: 509-242-7752
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Haggen plans closure of LL store
9/28/2015 2:24:14 PM

From staff reports

Less than four months after bringing a Liberty Lake grocery store under its brand, Haggen announced plans Sept. 24 to close the location, part of a request made through bankruptcy court to close 100 stores it had obtained earlier this year from Albertsons and Safeway in the wake of the grocery giants' merger.

A year ago, Haggen had 18 stores in the Pacific Northwest before purchasing 146 in the Albertsons-Safeway deal throughout the West Coast. In August, Haggen announced plans to close 27 stores. On Sept. 9, Haggen filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The Sept. 24 announcement of 100 closures included a complete withdrawal from new markets in California, Arizona and Nevada. The company now plans to operate 37 northwest stores.

The Bellingham Herald reported Sept. 24 that the stores on the closure list would receive 60-day notices, remaining open during that timeframe. No information on arrangements or opportunities that would be made available to Haggen employees in Liberty Lake was available at press time. There are no other Haggen locations in eastern Washington. The store at 1233 N. Liberty Lake Road had operated as a Safeway since opening in 2000 up until the transition this June.

A story in the May issue of The Splash talked about the family atmosphere among Safeway employees who were making the transition together to Haggen, including a core group of 13 who had worked together since the store first opened.

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