KNOXVILLE (WATE) - There was plenty of fanfare Wednesday for the opening of a new Kroger store in West Knoxville.
The Bearden High School band and an honor guard were on hand as the company celebrated its new Kroger marketplace on Kingston Pike near Cedar Bluff Road.
This is the second Kroger marketplace in Knoxville. Along with groceries it offers such items as furniture and jewelry.
Kroger marked the opening with donations to a pair of community groups.
"We're active in our community. It's really important to us," said Kroger District Manager David Wells. "So today we were able to donate $45,000 worth of school supplies to the Knox County Teachers Depot."
Liz Nother, with the depot, said, "To the teacher supply depot that means the world. This is our largest donation ever in our history, and we're going to be able to help many teachers this year and it's going to be fantastic."
The other donation was to Second Harvest Food Bank. "We've had a great partnership with Second Harvest for many years. In fact, since the very beginning," Wells said.
The intersection of Kingston Pike and Cedar Bluff has been a hot bed of commercial projects recently. A new Chuy's Tex-Mex restaurant will open near Kroger, plus Academy Sports, GFS Marketplace and other businesses are across the street.
The Bearden High School band and a color guard were on hand as the company celebrated.
