Aldi buys bank next to Swansea store. When will grocery store expand?
Aldi has purchased the former Bank of America building on North Belt West with ongoing plans to expand its Swansea store next door.
The former bank building is expected to be torn down as Bank of America plans to build a new ATM on the site.
Aldi isn’t releasing details of its expansion plan in Swansea but a spokesman confirmed improvements at the store will follow the company’s investment in upgrades nationwide.
“As part of our growth and expansion across the U.S., we can confirm we are expanding our Swansea store, located at 1708 N. Illinois St., to offer shoppers an improved layout with more refrigeration to accommodate the recently expanded fresh, healthy and convenient food,” Rob Jeffries, O’Fallon division vice president for Aldi, said in an email.
Aldi purchased the vacant Bank of America building at 10 North Belt West for $385,575, according to St. Clair County property records filed on Jan. 31.
When Aldi first announced the nationwide plan to improve stores in February 2017, the company said it expected to spend $1.6 billion but now the figure is at $1.9 billion, according to Jeffries’ statement.
“At this time, it is still too early to confirm any other details regarding the Swansea remodel,” Jeffries said. “We will be sure to follow up once we have more information available.”
Aldi opened a new store in Fairview Heights last year and remodeled a store in O’Fallon in 2017.
While Aldi has not yet taken out a building permit with the village of Swansea, Bank of America has taken one out for a plan to build a new ATM machine valued at $300,000 at 10 North Belt West.
The plans show that the former bank building, the drive-through canopy and the current ATM would be demolished and replaced by parking spaces and a new ATM.
The current ATM is on the west side of the property and the new one would be on the east side of the property.
The plans show the brick bank building would be demolished “by others.”
Tara Burke, a spokeswoman for Bank of America, said the new ATM is expected to be built in the second quarter of this year.
Bank of America will lease space from Aldi for the new ATM because this is a “high traffic” area for customers. “It’s convenient for them,” Burke said.
This story was originally published March 2, 2020 at 9:23 AM.
