Big Lots coming to Yakima

YAKIMA, Wash. -- A Big Lots store is slated to move into Yakima's Gateway Center.

The retailer has signed a lease with owner Wallace Properties to occupy 34,410 square feet at the shopping center off Interstate 82 at North Fair Avenue.

And that's "great" news for Yakima, according to Mike Morrisette, president and CEO of the Greater Yakima Chamber of Commerce.

"It means jobs," he said. "It means more traffic in the area, good traffic. I'm not talking about congestion. I'm talking about customer traffic."

The retail space, which used to house a Food Pavilion grocery store, has been empty since early 2007.

According to a Monday news release from Wallace Properties, Big Lots is scheduled to open there by this fall. Construction is slated to take place throughout the summer.

Then, Big Lots, which specializes in selling overstock and discontinued merchandise, is slated to join Target and OfficeMax as anchors at Gateway Center. It's expected to take over about half of the space of the former Food Pavilion store.

"I think it's going to be a wise move on their part," Morrisette said. "It's a good brand for our area because it's discount. I think it would fit well."

Big Lots, headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, has more than 1,360 stores in 47 states. The closest Big Lots stores to Yakima are in the Tri-Cities. There are more than a dozen Big Lots stores along the Interstate 5 corridor on the west side of the state.

The Fortune 500 company bills itself as the nation's largest broadline closeout retailer and offers a variety of low-price merchandise -- from seasonal products and furniture to housewares and toys.

"It is exciting to bring Big Lots to Yakima," Kevin Wallace, president of Wallace Properties, said in the Monday news release. "Their products compliment Target and OfficeMax very well, and they will enhance the shopping experience for our customers at Gateway Center."

For more information about the store, visit www.biglots.com or www.wallaceproperties.com.