Subscribe
Jobs
Cars
Real Estate
Apts
Classifieds
Shop
A grocery’s growth plans have pushed a local credit union into building two branches – locations it believes it needs to continue serving members.
Three Rivers Federal Credit Union is investing about $3 million to build two offices in the next 12 months. The locations will replace branches now in Scott’s Food & Pharmacy stores.
The non-profit financial institution feels forced into the building project.
Kroger Co., which owns Scott’s stores, this year announced plans to invest $75 million in the Fort Wayne market. The three- to five-year project includes building three stores, closing three stores, significantly expanding two stores and remodeling three other stores.
Three Rivers Federal Credit Union now operates in six Scott’s stores. It lost a location in February when Kroger closed the Scott’s at 5300 Decatur Road. Jeff Meyer, Three Rivers’ CEO, said Kroger officials didn’t tell him the store would close until the day after employees were notified.
Meyer has decided to take the initiative in replacing locations now operating in the Scott’s stores at 710 E. Dupont Road and at 5725 Coventry Lane in the Village at Coventry. The Dupont Road store is slated to close, and the Coventry store is scheduled to be demolished and rebuilt as a superstore, a process that will take months.
"We’re kind of left in the dark," he said. "That’s why we’re taking matters into our own hands."
Kroger spokesman John Elliott said the Cincinnati company would welcome a phone call from Meyer. Kroger wants good relationships with its partners.
One Kroger policy might have soured the relationship. Bob Moeder, the company’s central division president, insists affected employees be the first to know when a store is closing or other major changes are planned. Elliott agrees with the policy.
To date, Kroger hasn’t finalized layouts for its new stores, which include a store at Dupont and Tonkel roads. Elliott said the grocery plans to contact Three Rivers to give the credit union an opportunity to replace its locations with ones in other stores.
Three Rivers plans to break ground in October on buildings at 8370 W. Jefferson Blvd. and at Dupont and Diebold roads. The branches are scheduled to open before June 30.
The offices will employ eight to 10 workers each, creating six to 10 new jobs after existing employees move.
Three Rivers Federal Credit Union, which employs 230, has no plans to move out of the remaining Scott’s stores, Meyer said.
