The Food Lion grocery chain is gearing up to revamp three of its supermarkets in Burlington just as its parent company prepares to break ground on a massive new distribution center in the western part of the city.
Over the past several weeks, the city’s inspections department has issued renovation permits for three stores that the Salisbury-based company operates within Burlington’s borders. The sites of these dramatic makeovers include Food Lion locations along West Webb Avenue and near the interstate interchange for Alamance Road. Meanwhile, workers have already started to clear out old fixtures from a third store along South Church Street that’s within shouting distance of Elon’s municipal limits.
In all of these cases, the proposed overhauls are being taken on by the grocery chain’s landlords, who expect to spend over $1 million on each project, according to the city’s inspections records. These projects are nevertheless part and parcel of a broader plan that Food Lion has to strengthen its market presence in its home state…