New Maverik set for Nov. 29 opening

A project around town certainly getting a lot of attention is the destruction of the former Maverik store and preparation of the area for the new store. Of course, it's kind of hard to miss the machines and crews working inside the fenced area on Sixth Street.

Though a projected date for opening the new store was sometime in the first week of November, Chief Marketing Officer Aaron Simpson said construction is on track to finish on Nov. 28 and the store would likely open Nov. 29. Of course, those dates are subject to change based on weather and other factors.

Simpson also put to rest rumors of bones being found at the site, noting the crews have told him no such remnants - dinosaur or otherwise - have been discovered.

Prior to the tearing down of the old store, Simpson explained there were no crazy sales planned because the destruction was scheduled to happen less than a week after the eclipse. It was expected the crowds coming to town would help empty the shelves.

While there was plenty of activity at the Thermopolis store and others, Simpson said, things didn't get as crazy as expected the day of the eclipse. There seemed to be more people stocking up on the days leading up to the event, he said, but there was still plenty of inventory left over which had to be moved to other stores.

The biggest activity seen at the work site this past week was the installation of the new fuel tanks. Simpson said from this point the crews will focus on footings and other preparation for the new store. The new building will be built off-site, then brought to the town in three pieces. Following the set up of the structure, there will still be equipment to install.

With regard to staffing at the new store, Simpson reported the staff who worked at the former store will have jobs at the new.