DENVER — Safeway will shutter 10 stores in Colorado before the end of the year, including four in the Denver metro area, as part of a restructuring that merges its Intermountain and Denver divisions into the newly formed Mountain West Division. The move, which also affects one store each in New Mexico and Nebraska, will result in closures on or before November 7.
The affected Colorado stores include locations in Englewood, Northglenn, Denver, Aurora, Fort Collins, Loveland, Colorado Springs, La Junta, and Lamar. Safeway’s Farmington, N.M., and Chadron, Neb., stores will also close.
In a statement, Safeway said the decision followed a performance evaluation of its store network. “Safeway has proudly served these communities for decades, and the decision to close these stores was not made lightly,” said spokesperson Heather Halpape. “With a focus on growth, these closures will enable us to continue investing in our store network and better align with evolving customer needs. Together, these changes position us to operate in new and innovative ways that foster customer loyalty and drive long-term success.”
Local Impact and Community Reaction
The closures will leave significant gaps in grocery access across several communities. In La Junta and Lamar, where Safeway was the only full-service grocer, residents may now have to drive more than 60 miles to reach another supermarket. Lamar’s mayor noted on Facebook that the decision was tied to lower sales, added costs from a labor strike earlier this year, and the failure of Kroger’s proposed $24.6 billion acquisition of Albertsons, Safeway’s parent company…