Target targeting Moscow

Rumors continue to circulate that Target has targeted Moscow. No, the giant retailer is not aiming weapons of mass destruction at the capital of Russia. Target will be opening a store at the Palouse Mall in the hometown of the University of Idaho.

The rumor that Target was coming to town achieved substantiation on Sept. 11 when the Moscow-Pullman Daily News reported that Bill Belknap, Moscow’s deputy city supervisor of community planning and design, had Target’s first submission of plans on his desk.

The Idaho Business Review reached out to Belknap, who confirmed that Target itended to convert the former Macy’s space at the mall, explaining that the retailer would be moving into the anchor store spot formerly occupied by Macy’s and expanding it by 50%. “The prior space is roughly 40,000 square feet from Macy’s so they are going to add 20,000 to it–so the new store will be approximately 60,000 square feet,” Belknap said.

Belknap added that Target had sent the city plans “for just the building shell and exterior work.” Target hasn’t sent any plans yet for what they will be doing on the interior though Belknap anticipates those plans will arrive sometime in the near future. Target has not divulged when they plan to finish construction or open the new store.

Since the retailer is executing a simple expansion of an already-existing commercial space, the construction and approval process doesn’t require any special approvals, exceptions or variances. “(Target) just goes straight to the building permit,” Belknap remarked. “There is no specific review they need to go through other than by staff for the building, electrical, and mechanical code compliance …  It should be a very simple project for us.

The Idaho Business Review also reached out to Target, who sent a canned non-committal reply by email through spokesperson Aryn Ridge: “Thanks for reaching out. At Target, we continuously explore possible locations for new stores, including in the Moscow area. We are currently focused on new store growth with our small-format stores, which are smaller than our general merchandise Target stores and are located in dense urban and suburban neighborhoods as well as near college campuses. I can tell you we are pursuing the opportunity to reach guests in the area, but at this time, we’re not at a point where we can share any new store plans.”

The reply received from Target is, word-for-word, identical to the reply that the retail chain sent the Moscow-Pullman Daily News in August, when the daily newspaper attempted to confirm that Target was moving in.