Pardon their dust: Lynnwood Fred Meyer in the middle of a major remodel

The Fred Meyer store on 196th Street SW in Lynnwood is getting a multimillion dollar face-lift.

The 200,000-square-foot store first opened in 1968 and has undergone three other remodels — in 1978, 1988 and 2000.

“We remodel our stores about every 10 years. With the volume of traffic through our stores, 10 years is about all they can last before being a little beat up as well as out-of-date,” Melinda Merrill, Fred Meyer Director of Public Affairs, told Lynnwood Today.

But this renovation will be unlike any of the previous ones.

The drop ceiling will be replaced with skylights to let in natural light. Everything in the store will be brand new – from the fixtures to the décor. Even the exterior will get a new paint job.

The entrances will be refurbished. There will be a new pharmacy. Customers can enjoy a coffee from the new Tully’s stand, or shop in the new deli or bakery areas.

The grocery department will be expanded to include more produce, a larger nutrition center and more room for frozen foods. The small office that was in the middle of the grocery section will be gone.

Merrill says the renovation also will make the store more environmentally-friendly. All the frozen cases will be replaced with cases that have LED lights, which go a long way toward saving energy.

“Other things that customers might not see – reclaiming heat from equipment to heat the store, motion-sensor lights in the freezers and coolers in the stock room – add to the energy savings,” she said.

The linoleum in the store will be removed and the concrete underneath will be ground and polished. Concrete floors eliminate the need for chemical cleansers, Merrill said.

Another new feature is something many other Fred Meyer stores already have – a fuel center.

The company is currently in the permitting process. Merrill said the city of Lynnwood has strict landscaping requirements, so this fuel center won’t look like any other at Fred Meyer. It will have space for 14 vehicles – one of the largest fuel centers in the chain.

The fuel center is expected to open in September. The store’s grand reopening is scheduled for Oct. 15, 2010.

  1. Crazy, I had convinced myself the new Fred Meyers on 164th was built in anticipation of the 196th location closing down due to future downtown zoning. Good to know FM can support two stores so close to each other.

  2. I can't believe the fueling center was approved! It's totally contrary to the city's comprehensive plan, which indicates the site as a future park. Does this area really need another gas station– there are 6 in a one mile radius, and I've never waited in line at any of them. And… Chevron and Arco just totally rebuilt in the last year… just no need for more environmentally polluting petrol stations!

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