Michigan-based retail giant Meijer announced last week it will simultaneously open three new supercenters in Northeast Ohio on May 8, a significant expansion that will increase the retailer’s Ohio store count to 58 locations.
The new 159,000-square-foot stores will be located in Austintown, Medina, and Richmond Heights, bringing hundreds of new jobs to the region and expanding consumer options in previously underserved markets.
“We’re investing heavily to serve the Northeast Ohio community and consistently receiving positive feedback about our value and convenience,” said Todd Anderson, Vice President of the Ohio Region for Meijer, in a press release issued March 18.
The stores will feature the familiar Meijer layout with extensive grocery departments, including bakery, meat, seafood, and deli sections, alongside a garden center, apparel department, and home goods section. Each location will also include a full-service pharmacy, health and beauty care department, pet department, and sections for electronics, toys, and sporting goods.
The Austintown location will include a Meijer Express gas station, scheduled to open on April 10, nearly a month before the main store launches.
Long-Anticipated Expansion
The announcement represents the culmination of a nearly decade-long push by Meijer to strengthen its presence in Northeast Ohio. The retailer opened stores in Stow in 2019 and Brimfield in 2020, but plans for additional locations have been slower to materialize.
Focus on Current Projects
While the Northfield Center project remains in limbo, Meijer is clearly focusing its resources on the three new locations set to open in May.
The company is currently hiring for approximately 325 positions across the three stores, including clerks, cake decorators, customer service representatives, cashiers, and meat cutters. Meijer currently employs more than 13,000 team members statewide at its stores and distribution and manufacturing facilities in Tipp City.
“Ohio was the first state we expanded to outside of Michigan, and we look forward to continuing that growth this year and into the future,” Anderson said in the company’s statement.
Industry analysts note that Meijer’s expansion comes at a time when competition in the grocery sector is intensifying across Northeast Ohio, with other chains like Giant Eagle, Aldi, and Marc’s also investing in new or remodeled stores.
David Livingston, a supermarket analyst with DJL Research, sees Meijer’s expansion as a strategic move to capture market share in specific communities. “They’re clearly targeting areas where they see opportunity, whether it’s underserved markets or locations where they can take business from established competitors.”
For residents of Austintown, Medina, and Richmond Heights, the new Meijer supercenters represent not just new shopping options but also potential economic catalysts for their communities.
“Having a major retailer like Meijer make this kind of investment sends a positive signal about the economic health of our region,” said James Kovach, a commercial real estate agent in Medina. “These stores create jobs, generate tax revenue, and often attract additional development to surrounding areas.”
As the May 8 opening approaches, Meijer representatives indicated that more details about the new stores, including grand opening festivities, will be announced in the coming weeks.
Notably absent from the announcement was any mention of a once-planned store in Northfield Center Township, a project first proposed in 2015 that appears to have stalled indefinitely.
The Northfield Center location was slated to be built on approximately 25 acres of land on State Route 82 behind the Spitzer Chevrolet dealership. The project faced significant hurdles from the beginning, including a contentious zoning battle that eventually went to court in 2019, with property owner Spitzer Management winning the case and securing a zoning change from residential to commercial.
Even after clearing the zoning hurdle, the project encountered further delays related to traffic concerns on State Route 82. A traffic impact study was eventually completed and approved by the Ohio Department of Transportation, which determined what roadway improvements would be necessary to accommodate the increased traffic.
However, despite these approvals, there has been little visible progress on the Northfield Center location in recent years. Local officials and residents who once anticipated the economic boost from a new Meijer store have been left wondering if the project will ever materialize.
Mark Wilson, a longtime Northfield Center resident who lives near the proposed site, expressed disappointment about the stalled project. “We were looking forward to having a major grocery option closer to home. The property just sits there empty while we watch other communities get their Meijer stores.”
Township officials declined to comment specifically on the status of the Northfield Center project, referring inquiries to Meijer and property owner Spitzer Management. Neither company responded to requests for comment regarding the Northfield Center location.
Meanwhile, Northfield Center residents can only wait and wonder if their long-promised Meijer store will ever become reality, or if they’ll need to travel to one of the other Northeast Ohio locations to experience what they’ve been missing.
Discover more from Northeast Ohio News
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
