Ikea releases rendering for new, larger Burbank store

Ikea released a rendering Thursday of its proposed new Burbank store, which would be 92% bigger than the existing store and would turn one of the smallest Ikeas in California into one of the largest in the country.

The new Ikea -- west of San Fernando Boulevard and south of Providencia Avenue -- would be 470,000 square feet, or about the size of eight football fields, the company said. Ikea said it hopes to receive approval and complete construction of the store in time to open in 2016. Until then, the existing Burbank store will operate as usual.

The city of Burbank received Ikea’s plans Nov. 8, and the next step will be to conduct an environmental review, Burbank senior planner Jesse Brown said. The proposed site for the new Ikea is home to Western Studio Service, which would be demolished, he said. The new Ikea would be built with 1,700 parking spaces, the store said.

Residents who live within 1,000 feet of the proposed development will be notified of the plans, Brown said, and at least two public hearings will be held to discuss the project and take public comment.

How does 470,000 square feet measure up in Ikealand? The store in Kungens Kurva, a suburb of Stockholm, would remain the largest Ikea in the world, at about 594,000 square feet. The next four largest Ikeas are in China, store spokesman Joseph Roth said.

The proposed Burbank store, however, would eclipse what is currently the largest Ikea in America, the store in Schaumburg, Ill., outside of Chicago, which is reported as 450,000 or 458,000 square feet, depending on the source.

The new Burbank store also would dwarf existing California stores in Covina (325,000 square feet), Costa Mesa (308,000), East Palo Alto (290,000), Emeryville (274,000), West Sacramento (265,000), Carson (220,000) and San Diego (198,000).

You can read more details in Alene Tchekmedyian’s earlier story.

Updated: This post was updated late Nov. 15 to include square-foot comparisons of Ikea stores.

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