Johnson City Wegmans Store Getting $10 Million in Upgrades

A multi-million dollar modernization and improvement project is underway at the Wegmans store in Johnson City.

Demolition and construction work at the supermarket on Harry L. Drive began on January 3.

The project is designed to cause minimal disruption to store operations. Many customers likely are unaware that the work is taking place because much of what's happening is going on in areas not seen by the public.

Store manager David Orlovsky said the Market Café will be expanded, increasing from about 140 seats to 210 seats.

A new kitchen will be added to provide greater efficiency and flexibility for future operations. New restrooms will be built on the west side of the store.

Orlovsky said the planned work is expected to cost between $10 million and $12 million.

The project is being supervised by Scott Lundy of Johnson City. Lundy said the work should be completed by the end of August.

A 6,500-square-foot addition was constructed on the northeast corner of the store last summer. That provided space for offices and an employees service area. It also freed up space for the expanded café.

Orlovsky said longtime store manager Rich Gilbert developed the concept for the work that's now underway. Gilbert started working at the Johnson City store when it opened in August 1990. He died in April 2019.

When the expansion project is completed, the store will have 131,000 square feet of space. That makes it one of the largest locations for the Rochester-based Wegmans, which now operates 106 stores in New York, Pennsylvania and five other states.

Orlovsky said the Johnson City store now employs about 650 people.

The pictures below provide a glimpse of what's going on at the Johnson City Wegmans store.

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.