Ikea store to be built in Kansas City area

Casual Living Staff -- Casual Living, 12/21/2012 10:06:08 AM

Artist's rendering of proposed Ikea-Merriam, Kan. store.MERRIAM, Kan. - Ikea received unanimous approval from the City Council of Merriam, Kan., for a Kansas City-area store, scheduled to open in the fall of 2014.

Pending the land purchase, permits and demolition of on-site buildings, construction of the future Ikea Merriam will begin this coming summer.

Located eight miles southwest of Kansas City, Mo., the 349,000-sq.-ft. store will be built along the eastern side of Interstate-35 at the Johnson Drive exit on 18 acres to be purchased from DDR Corp. One level of parking below the store, a two-level parking structure, and spaces accessible at-grade will provide more than 1,200 parking spaces on-site. Store plans reflect the same unique architectural design for which Ikea stores are known worldwide. Ikea also is evaluating potential on-site power generation to complement its current U.S. renewable energy presence at 90% of its U.S. locations.

Ikea Merriam will feature nearly 10,000 exclusively designed items, 50 inspirational room-settings, three model home interiors, a supervised children's play area, and a 450-seat restaurant. More than 500 jobs are expected to be created during the construction phase, and the retailer plans to hire approximately 300 employees.