Business editor
mbradwell@observer-reporter.com
A second store in The Foundry development has been temporarily closed following an engineering inspection regarding soil movement beneath the building.
Katie Loughnot, spokeswoman for Ross Stores in Pleasanton, Calif., said Wednesday that Ross sent an engineer to look at the chain's Ross-Dress-for-Less store in South Strabane Township on Tuesday.
The decision for a temporary closure came just a day after Bed Bath & Beyond announced Tuesday that it was temporarily closing its store because of soil movement beneath the foundation of its store, which opened in April 2007.
While Loughnot said the test conducted by its engineers "showed nothing conclusive," Ross decided to temporarily close the store "while we continue to evaluate the situation and study its full impact. We consider this a precautionary measure. The safety of our customers is our top priority."
She said personnel were in the process of closing the store Wednesday afternoon.
Ross-Dress-for-Less, which is adjacent to Bed Bath & Beyond, opened just a week after its neighbor last year.
When the Foundry's 104-acre site was being prepared two years ago, its developer, Indianapolis-based Premier Properties USA, said crews moved 4 million cubic yards of earth and blasted 1.7 million cubic yards of rock. The company also said it built one of the largest retaining walls in the Western Hemisphere.
Gary Stokum of Washington County Conservation District said Wednesday his office, along with the state Department of Environmental Protection, processed the National Pollutant Discharge Elmination System permit that was required before construction began on the site. He added that the permit, which requires a study of erosion and sedimentation that is discharged into nearby streams, isn't related to soil movement beneath the foundation.
Jim Barnes, building code enforcement officer for South Strabane Township, said Wednesday all of the structures met building codes when they were completed.
He noted that Premier Properties did work to stabilize certain areas outside of the buildings last year.