Norco is building an 86,000 building in Meridian to consolidate its billing operations and relocate its Meridian store. Image courtesy of Larson Architects.
Norco is at work on an 86,000-square-foot building in Meridian to consolidate its billing operations and relocate its Meridian store. Image courtesy of Larson Architects.

Boise-based Norco is breaking ground on a two-story, 86,000-square-foot Meridian office and retail building near Overland and Eagle roads that will be the largest among 78 locations the company has in seven states.

Norco provides gases, supplies and equipment to the medical, safety, welding and janitorial industries from Norco stores in Idaho and all the neighboring states.

Norco will consolidate medical billing operations at the new Meridian location, functions now carried out at company headquarters and in Meridian and Nampa. The ground level will have a retail store that is a relocation of the Meridian store now at Eagle and Ustick road, Norco CEO Jim Kissler said.

The store was moved to simplify distribution to Ada County customers with easy Interstate 84 access, Kissler said.

Norco is breaking ground Aug. 28 with completion expected in May. The new Meridian building will have capacity for 300 employees, but Kissler expects to open with about 175 employees, with about 25 to 50 in retail and distribution.

Larson Architects of Garden City is the architect. PETRA Inc. of Meridian is the general contractor.

“It’s part of our continual growth,” Kissler said.

The Kissler family acquired two Norco stores in Boise and Twin Falls in 1968 and now has stores in nearly all large and mid-size cities in the northwest quadrant north of Interstate 80.

“We want to expand in large metro areas that we’re already in,” Kissler said. “I think we can grow quite a bit in our footprint. We’re better off focusing on the area where we are already distributing.”