Midway Walmart to close Sept. 20

By MARGIE O’LOUGHLIN

St. Paul’s only Walmart store, located in the Midway Marketplace at 1450 University Ave. W., will close Sept. 20. The pharmacy will close one week earlier, on Sept. 13.

The retail giant issued a statement on Aug. 28 citing factors that included poor overall performance. Employees commented on consistently high theft rates at the Midway Marketplace location, and its inability to provide a full scale grocery as also being contributing factors.

The store’s 333 workers will be encouraged to seek positions at other Walmart locations, the company said. The nearest Walmart stores are located in West St. Paul and Roseville. Employees who don’t choose to relocate will be paid through Nov. 8, and subsequently will receive severance pay.

Walmart is one of the world’s largest companies with revenues worth more than $500 billion, according to the 2018 Fortune Global 500 list. It is also the largest private employer in the world with 2.2 million employees, yet it is quietly closing stores across the US and Canada.

Other recent major retail closures in the neighborhood include Herberger’s in the Midway Marketplace, and the Rainbow Foods that was torn down in the adjacent Midway Shopping Center to make room for Allianz Field. It remains to be seen what kind of amenities will be developed to meet the needs of Hamline Midway residents.

Kraus-Anderson Realty is the development division of Kraus-Anderson Construction. They purchased the Midway Marketplace last March. The 324,430-square-foot center has been anchored by national and regional businesses including Walmart, Cub Foods, TJ Maxx, LA Fitness, and Dollar Tree for years. According to Kraus-Anderson Realty, redevelopment plans include the addition of office and retail space, residential and hotel development.