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Valley Grande Mayor Wayne Labbe announced Monday night that the certificate of occupancy has been approved for Dave’s Market to officially open its new store on Citizens Parkway.

Labbe said the market is planning to open on Thursday with the permit being approved.

“I thought I’d never see this day,” Labbe told the council at their meeting Monday. “And the store is great. I mean, all the way from the produce room to the bathrooms. Everything is very, very nice.”

Labbe said the opening is four years in the making. While this Thursday is the soft opening of the business, the Valley Grande City Council recommended that they hold the ribbon cutting and grand opening at 8 a.m. Monday, Oct. 7. They will get with store officials to see if that date and time would work.

Labbe said they are planning a big day for Dave’s Market. He is hoping to invite television and other media to attend the grand opening. And the reason for doing it so early in the morning is so that it doesn’t interfere with the peak of their business day.

In addition to the grand opening, Labbe said Dave’s Market has also added 15 additional employees at the store including three meat cutters. He said the new store will also feature 5,000 additional products that are not carried at the current store.

Labbe said they are busy stocking the new store so that when they close the old store on Wednesday night, they will be able to open the new store Thursday.

And the theme throughout the store is a country food mart.

“So we’re looking for that to be a good day for him,” Labbe said. “He had a couple things that he had to get done, but it was minor stuff. That’s the reason we went ahead, signed the certificate of occupancy and gave it to him, and it was blessed by everybody.”