South Glendale residents decry pending loss of Albertsons

A group of about 150 residents who live near the Albertsons on Central Avenue in South Glendale have submitted a petition to the company in a last-ditch effort to keep the supermarket open.

The Albertsons is one of 18 slated to close in Southern California in the coming month as its parent company, Supervalu, seeks to stem steep operating losses and combat aggressive competition from big-box rivals by shuttering underperforming locations.

Albertsons will have 228 stores left in California after the closures.

But residents in the South Glendale neighborhood say that without their local store, they will be left with few grocery options and be forced to travel farther.

The store is a “cohesive factor in the neighborhood,” said Michelle Cole, the resident who led the petition effort.

There have been two or three efforts to save other stores set for closure in Southern California, said company spokeswoman Lilia Rodriguez.

She said it’s always a difficult decision to close a store.

“At times, it becomes necessary for us to close stores that are not meeting company goals in order to provide overall better service,” Rodriguez said in a statement, adding that the decision to close the Central Avenue location was final.

Cole, who doesn’t have a car, said that while she could take a bus to a Pavilions further south on Central, she likes Albertsons because it’s in more of a residential area north of Chevy Chase Drive.

There were lots of empty shelves inside the store Tuesday afternoon — a product of a liquidation sale is underway. Parts of the refrigerated sections were almost bare and the bakery had just six cakes on display.

Outside the store, customers said the store would be missed.

“Sometimes I walk here. It’s easy for me,” said Yeran Kashishin, a regular customer who lives near the store.

Fifty-four employees could be laid off as a result of the store’s closure, according to filings with the California Employment Development Department.

They too would be missed, said customer Maria Medina.

“Some of the cashiers are super nice.”

-- Mark Kellam, Times Community News

Follow Mark Kellam on Twitter: @LAMarkKellam