Locals gear up for IKEA's opening Locals gear up for IKEA's opening (July 30, 2003)

** Some 100,000 customers expected in first six days. Willows residents worried about traffic.

By Rebecca Wallace
Almanac Staff Writer

What's in the big blue box growing next to the freeway?

Depends who you ask.

The IKEA home store, set to open in East Palo Alto on Wednesday, August 27, means different things to different people: a chance to buy Scandinavian coffee tables without driving to Emeryville, a traffic nightmare waiting to happen, hundreds of new jobs.

Most of all, IKEA is something that will have effects well beyond East Palo Alto.

These days, the 290,000-square-foot building at 1700 East Bayshore Road swarms with activity. Amid the pungent smells of paint and concrete, people in hard hats drill, weld and edge backwards in beeping trucks. Rainbows of rugs and pillows cover the walls.

A lot of the work has nothing to do with displaying the Sweden-based store's products. IKEA personnel have also been busy drafting a traffic plan with East Palo Alto and its neighbors, and working to hire 500 new employees.

So far, the store has hired about 200 people, 10 of whom are from Menlo Park, said Nin Assi, assistant store manager in charge of sales. Many more are from East Palo Alto.

"Everything seems to be right on schedule," Mr. Assi said, standing next to an escalator covered with black plastic.

Accommodating the devotees

For the faithful, the coming of IKEA is cause for a pilgrimage.

Before IKEA made it up north from Southern California, Jeff Lowe thought nothing of schlepping from his Belmont apartment down to Burbank for a shopping trip.

"I specifically drove down there on a Saturday, filled my car with housewares and bookshelves, slept over at my cousin's house, and drove back Sunday," he said.

Subsequently, an IKEA opened in Emeryville, but Mr. Lowe balked at the I-880 traffic and "difficult" parking. He says he'll be thrilled to drive from his current home in Sunnyvale to East Palo Alto.

Joanna Reed also says she'll drive up from her home near Santa Cruz to shop at the new IKEA.

According to Mr. Assi, some 100,000 customers are expected during the store's first six days. And all these devotees' cars have to go somewhere.

IKEA's methods to try to control traffic will include new road lanes and coordination of traffic signals in East Palo Alto. In its 1,500-space, three-level parking garage, monitors will direct drivers to available spots, Mr. Assi said.

Menlo impact

Law enforcement officers and city officials will also be paying close attention.

Speculating where IKEA traffic might affect Menlo Park, Jamal Rahimi, the city's transportation manager, said: "The back-ups probably will start on the freeway. And it kind of spills over onto Willow, University, Bayfront and Marsh. Then the next level of spillover will be possibly some of the neighborhood streets."

The most likely area to be affected in Menlo Park is the Willows, which is close to University Avenue. But Mr. Rahimi said he thought cut-through traffic wouldn't hit the Willows right away.

"This is a regional attraction. If you're going to a place you don't know anything about, you probably don't start going through a neighborhood street," he said.

Mr. Rahimi said transportation officials will keep a close eye on traffic in the Willows to determine if road closures or new signs are called for.

In addition, the Menlo Park Police Department will have extra officers -- at least three motorcycle officers and two patrol cars -- on hand to help East Palo Alto police and California Highway Patrol officers manage traffic during the store's first few days, Patrol Division Commander Bruce Goitia said.

Nervous about the opening, Willows resident Ross Wilson urged Menlo Park to close off some Willows streets where they connect with East Palo Alto.

"It bottles the freeway; it clogs the neighborhoods up," Mr. Wilson said of IKEA traffic. "Look at Emeryville."

A tough job market

Lawrence King keeps a stack of IKEA applications in his office, but they're going fast.

A career development specialist at OICW (Opportunities Industrialization Center West) in Menlo Park, Mr. King helps people find work by assisting them with resumes and interviewing techniques. In this tough market, his clients are snapping up IKEA applications left and right.

"It's an awesome opportunity. We need this in the community," he said.

Mr. King has particularly high hopes for clients in OICW's culinary training program, who could soon be dishing up Swedish meatballs in IKEA's cafeteria or pouring coffee at its cafe.

IKEA has held two job fairs at its East Palo Alto site and also took part in the first annual Belle Haven Job Fair in April.

While the management positions have been filled, the store is still hiring in areas such as administration, sales and loss prevention, Mr. Assi said. Those interested can go to www.ikea-usa.com and click on the East Palo Alto store's site.