Ikea Project

The Mall of America in Bloomington, Minn., is the nation's largest retail and entertainment complex.

The 4.2-million-square-foot complex is home to 520 retail outlets, the Camp Snoopy indoor family theme park , and Underwater Adventures, a 1.2-million-gallon walk-through aquarium.

Mall officials estimate that the facility annually contributes more than $1.7 billion in economic impact activity to the state of Minnesota. The Mall of America opened in 1992.

Now, the Mall of America has entered Phase II of its development. The first element of Phase II was announced last year when the Swedish firm of Ikea disclosed plans for construction of a 336,000-square-foot home furnishings store north of the existing mall.

The new store is part of an Ikea expansion program for North America announced last year that includes construction of a least five new stores per year for the next 10 years. The company's annual sales exceed $12 billion, including $1.4 billion in the United States.

The two-story Ikea store will sell approximately 13,000 home-furnishing products, including assemble-it-yourself furniture at discount prices.

Phase II of Mall of America expansion is zoned for up to 5.7 million square feet of new development and will be constructed on 42 acres of property on the site of the former Metropolitan Sports Center and its parking lot.

A bridge will be constructed to link Phase I with Phase II.

As the first tenant of Phase II, the Mall of America Ikea store will feature approximately 50 individual room settings, five model homes, a children's play area, and a 350-seat Ikea restaurant serving specialty items such as Swedish meatballs, ligonberries and smoked salmon. The store is expected to employ approximately 500 workers.

Store features include a parking area capable of accommodating 1,373 vehicles.

"This is a new store in a new market," said Max Urban Hedberg, Ikea store manager. "But, in this case, it's a market that has a built-in affinity for our Scandinavian background."

Ikea was founded in Sweden in 1943 and opened its first U.S. store 42 years later. Ikea has 175 stores in 31 countries, including 15 in the United States and nine in Canada. New stores will open this summer in New Haven, Conn., and Philadelphia.

Prior to the Mall of America store's opening this month, more than 150 construction workers could be found on the site.

According to Hedberg, the facility has consumed more than 3,650 tons of structural steel, approximately 18,000 cubic yards of concrete, and 201 miles of wiring. Project general contractor is the Pepper Construction Group, Chicago.

As is traditional with all Ikea stores, the Mall of America facility will be painted blue and yellow (colors of the Swedish flag).

Mall of America officials announced that future Phase II expansion will likely include premier hotels, an office complex, restaurants, recreational facilities, entertainment attractions, and, of course, more retail stores.

Ikea was founded by Ingvar Kamprad in 1943. The name Ikea was formed from the founder's initials plus the first letters of Elmtaryd and Agunnaryd, the farm and village where Kamprad grew up.