With the opening of a King Soopers Marketplace on Jan. 24, Falcon is now a three-supermarket town.
The Safeway anchoring the Falcon Town Center opened in 2000; the Walmart Supercenter in Falcon opened in 2007.
Now, across Woodmen Road from the Walmart is the Falcon Marketplace, anchored by the new, 124,000-square-foot King Soopers Marketplace. Before the opening of the King Soopers, the new, 20-plus-acre shopping center had already greeted Panda Express, Slim Chickens, Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers, Dutch Bros Coffee and more; Chipotle Mexican Grill opened at the center just a few weeks before the King Soopers opening.
A King Soopers Marketplace is larger than a regular King Soopers and sells apparel, home goods, small appliances and more, in addition to groceries. The new store employs more than 315 people, according to a press release, and will be open daily from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. As outlined in the release, it includes the following:
• Murray’s Cheese shop, with an array of cheeses from around the world
• A sushi station with a variety of grab-and-go rolls and nigiri, along with the option for customers to order something custom-made for their tastes.
• Starbucks baristas create a full range of coffees, teas and snacks, with both indoor and outdoor seating options.
• A pharmacy including drive-thru services
• A fuel center with 18 pumping stations open 24 hours a day
“We can’t think of a better location to open our 13th Marketplace store than right here in Falcon,” Joe Kelley, president of King Soopers, said in the release. “We are excited to be part of this growing and vibrant community.”
A King Soopers spokeswoman declined to go into specifics when asked what factors the grocery giant looked at in deciding it was time for a store in Falcon, but did mention, as Kelley did, “The growing Falcon community.”
Opening day drew mostly positive reviews from shoppers posting on Nextdoor. (A few welcomed the new store simply because it meant a less-crowded experience at Safeway or Walmart.) Among the comments: “It’s big! And super nice.” “Beautiful spacious store.” “Very open, spacious, great prices, produce looked very good.” “Very busy, but looks like a great store.”
A big unknown is what will happen if the proposed merger between Kroger, parent company of King Soopers, and Albertsons, which operates Safeway, is completed. The two companies in January announced a new timeline for the merger; originally expected to be completed early this year, it now is expected to close in the first half of Kroger’s fiscal 2024, as it awaits regulatory approval; Kroger’s fiscal second quarter ends Aug. 17.
While Kroger vowed it “will not close any stores, distribution centers or manufacturing facilities or lay off any frontline associates as a result of the merger,” the two companies have announced plans to sell more than 400 stores nationwide to C&S Wholesale Grocers, which would include 52 Colorado stores under the Albertsons banner. Albertsons operates 105 stores in Colorado, nearly all of them Safeway stores, raising the possibility that the Falcon Safeway could be among those sold. The companies have not reported which stores would be sold.
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser filed a lawsuit in Denver District Court last month to try to block the merger; that followed a similar lawsuit by Washington state’s attorney general in January.
