Customers React To Urbandale Hy-Vee Closing for a Month

The at 86^th and Douglas will close its doors July 15 at 6 p.m. so the company can prepare for the opening of a new store next door.

The existing store will be demolished to make way for parking for the new store, which will be Hy-Vee's largest ever.

However, Hy-Vee will open part of its new store to customers of the pharmacy and the Midwest Heritage Bank branch. Those parts of the new store will openJuly 16. The store also will offer free prescription delivery and drive-up service for pharmacy customers.

The new Urbandale Hy-Vee store is set to open fully on Aug. 14.

"It's kind of shock that the store is going to be closed for a month," said Beverly Blaha, as she and husband Dave loaded groceries into their car Friday morning.

"It will be an inconvenience because we have to eat," she said.

Al and Kathi Pratt have been shopping at this Hy-Vee for 30 years. They are stoic about having to shop elsewhere for a month.

"It's got to be done," she said.

"We'll just have to stop eating," he joked.

The couple expects to shop at the Windsor Heights Hy-Vee, which Al noted has a better selection of gluten-free products. An expanded Health Mart at the new Urbandale store is one of the things they're excited about.

The new store will incorporate several departments and features that are firsts for the market, said Josh Asche, Urbandale Hy-Vee store director.

“Every new store is special in its own way, but this is perhaps the most innovative store Hy-Vee has ever built,” Asche said. “We’ve visited retailers throughout the country, looking at different store formats, and we’ve taken the best concepts we’ve seen and adapted them to create a whole new shopping experience for our customers.”

A centerpiece of the new Urbandale Hy-Vee store will be the company’s first Market Fresh Grille, a casual dining spot that converts to a full-service restaurant starting at 4 p.m. Evening customers at Market Fresh Grille will be served by trained wait staff, order from a menu created by the store’s chefs, and have the opportunity to enjoy a variety of wines and craft beers with their meals.

Other innovations at the new Urbandale Hy-Vee include a sushi bar with seating, a coffee shop/lounge area with stone fireplace, authentic Italian gelato, a fruit and juice bar, an oatmeal bar for breakfast, pizzas fired in a wood stone oven, a large wine and spirits shop, an expanded housewares section with a cooking demonstration area, and what Asche called “the largest selection of bulk foods in central Iowa.”

There will also be a section devoted to Chef’s Creations – meals, entrees, side dishes and desserts prepared by Hy-Vee chefs and specially packaged for takeout.

Asche said it’s unusual for Hy-Vee to close an existing store before its replacement is ready to open, but in the case of the new Urbandale, it couldn’t be avoided.

“We need to make sure we have sufficient parking available for our customers for the grand opening on Aug. 14, and to do that, we need to tear down the existing store building, level the site and build our parking lot,” he said. “It will take about a month to accomplish all that, which is why the existing store is closing July 15 at 6 p.m.” 

“We understand the month between the closing of the old store and the opening of the new store will cause some inconveniences, and we really apologize for that,” Asche said. “We’re doing everything we can to minimize the disruption for our customers, our employees and the community.”

Asche said Hy-Vee is sending a letter to residents in the vicinity of the store, explaining the transition and offering incentives to encourage them to shop at other area Hy-Vee stores during the month the Urbandale store is closed.

“Our customers have been terrific throughout the building process, and we wanted to show our appreciation for their loyalty and reward them for continuing to shop at Hy-Vee,” he said.

Steve Riley said he'll probably shop at other Urbandale grocery stores, although he said he may drive to the Hy-Vee on 74th Street in West Des Moines.

"I'll live with it," he said of the temporary closing.

Employees of the store will spend the month training in the new store or working at other Hy-Vee stores in the metro area, Asche said.

“Everyone is working together to make this transition as smooth as possible for our customers,” Asche said. “We can’t wait to open the doors to our new store on Aug. 14.”