Lake City Fred Meyer to close
Thursday, August 21, 2025
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| Fred Meyer in Lake City to close mid-October |
Stores that Kroger has either closed or will be closing:
Fred Meyer in Lake City, Redmond, Everett, Kent, Tacoma, and a QFC in Mill Creek
They blame shoplifting but data from at least one store shows that theft has plummeted with the end of the pandemic.
Last year, they failed in a merger attempt with Albertsons.
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3 comments:
Shoreline Fred Meyer is almost as bad as Lake City. It must have barely missed the chopping block this round.
I remember when closing hours were cut back from 11 to 10. "Oh no, this doesn't have anything to do with crime," people rationalized. Denial was everywhere. There's no denying it anymore. Armed security, door bag checks, why have we let it get this bad?
If we don't elect judges who will sentence offenders with a dozen thefts to jail time, then we'll deserve it when Kroger shuts down our store next.
I drive by here twice a day, going to and from work. Lake City Way is in sad state south of 145th, with empty buildings, derelict lots and lots of graffiti. And there's the homeless camps that have been a feature of the area around 125th st for several years (2 murders in that vicinity just recently, and additional stabbings). In the mornings campers occupy the sidewalks S, E and W of Fred Meyer and extend into the store parking lot. There's obvious signs of drug use - with people stumbling out into the road. 35th Ave NE, to the East, has had a chronic problem with RV campers, and sections of the sidewalk are no longer navigable because of tents and RV debris. So the closure of this store is not a surprise. Grocery stores operate on a narrow profit margin which I'm sure is not helped by the "shrinkage" and the need to hire security (there was a stabbing at the store earlier this month). And maybe Kroger looked at plans to increase homeless resources in the neighborhood and decided to move on.
I did notice that this morning the whole block around the store had been swept, but it's too late.
I suspect that Fred Meyer purchased (did not lease) this property long ago. A sale would give Kroger cash today. The cash may be used to lease and develop another location, or it may be used to purchase shares of Kroger.
I would not expect to see "For Lease" signs going up. I would expect high density housing to be built. These closures would have been in negotiation for quite some time.
As for the "crime and regulatory environment" explanation, it's a parting slap at the cities involved.
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