We’re Starting to See Activity in the New WinCo Parking Lot

It looks like we're finally starting to see the first bit of action when it comes to WinCo taking over the building where the Shopko used to be on S. Reserve St. If you recall, it was back in October that we got confirmation of the news - WinCo had purchased the property the prior month. Is it just me or does it feel like it's been so much longer since that was making headlines? I guess you could say we've had a couple things happening that have made the months drag on a little bit

Delia Furrer's Facebook post above shared the excitement that a lot of people felt when the news of WinCo coming to Missoula was announced. Up until now there's been very little activity at the old Shopko site. I've seen vehicles for sale, positioned along Reserve, but not much else in the empty parking lot. Now, all of a sudden, they've flipped the switch and it looks they're ready to get down to business.

Last weekend I was on a coffee run to Starbucks and saw a chain link fence around most of the parking lot. Fast forward a couple of days and the construction equivalent of blackout curtains started to appear on parts of the fence. And now, today, the entire perimeter has been blocked off to obstruct the view from traffic around the area.

And now.........we wait! What radical changes are coming to the building? How long will it take? When will it open?

I did a little looking on the WinCo website to see if they've posted any job openings - but they haven't - just Billings and Helena positions are listed as of now.

It will be interesting to see how the Rosauers vs. WinCo battle will play out once the new store opens. Will it be beneficial to us shoppers to have the two stores located so close to each other? Who will have the better deals? Will you hit both stores to get the best prices on different products? We'll see.......someday........right now it's just a fence with blackout curtains.