Wal-Mart pursues new image in Round Lake Beach
It took more than three years of approvals but Wal-Mart Stores Inc., is set to refresh and upgrade its offerings in Round Lake Beach.
Village and store officials held a ceremonial groundbreaking Thursday for a Supercenter at Route 83 and Monaville Road, one of the first in the Chicago area to feature a new style.
"When you drive around and see a Wal-Mart, they'll have all sorts of different looks. What we wanted to do was create a better visual image," said Steve Nikel, real estate manager for the company.
The Supercenter will use energy efficiencies and will be smaller than originally proposed, in part because reductions in product packaging require less space.
"This is a considerable departure from what we built just a couple of years ago," said John Bisio, manager of public affairs.
At about 175,000 square feet it will replace Wal-Mart's original 115,000 square foot Round Lake Beach store, which opened 20 years ago in a shopping center along Rollins Road. The new store will take about a year to build and is expected to add 150 to 200 new jobs to the current workforce of about 230.
The company has been opening about 150 Supercenters, which feature a grocery store, each year. That pace has slowed, but the company wanted to expand in Round Lake Beach because the area is considered a strong market.
The new store is expected to generate up to $1 million per year in sales tax revenue, about $250,000 more per year than the existing store. The village's total annual take in sales tax is about $3 million.
Mayor Richard Hill said the project will encourage other commercial development and expansion along Route 83. Wal-Mart has a contract to sell its original store to the owner of Mallard Creek shopping center. That entire plaza could be redeveloped but no plans have been submitted to the village.
Wal-Mart first proposed a 204,000 square foot store but the size decreased after several revisions, including elimination of a gas station and tire and lube center. The process even included a study of the endangered sandhill crane, which is in evidence on nearby wetlands but was found not to nest there.
Improvements will include lane widening, curbs, turn lanes, storm sewers, traffic signals and sidewalks along Route 83 and Monaville Road. A traffic signal will be installed at Route 83 and Engle Drive.
Wal-Mart on Thursday reported a 2.4 percent increase in October sales, well over analysts expectations.