Kohl’s opens today

Outside, workers painted the last lines in the parking lot, while inside, employees placed the last items on the shelves and made sure the displays looked just right. Dozens of people spent the day Saturday making sure the new Kohl’s on Shugart Road was ready for its opening today.

“We had a special session for all the associates today so that they could get a feel for the registers and make sure they are ready for all the customers,” said Kohl’s District Manager Sam Beauregard.

The store employs around 130 to 150 people.

At about 55,000 square feet, the Dalton Kohl’s is a bit smaller than the typical Kohl’s store, but Beauregard said customers can expect all the name brands and all the service they are used to — such as Vera Wang, Dockers and Apt. 9 — and some that are brand new, including a new line of products by singer-actress Jennifer Lopez.

“We just launched this about two weeks ago,” Beauregard said.

Everywhere you walk in the store you can see J-Lo smiling at you. From women’s wear to night clothes to bedding and bath accessories.

“This line is exclusive to Kohl’s,” said Beauregard.

You’ll also find, exclusive at Kohl’s, a collection of clothes, shoes and accessories by singer-actor Marc Anthony.

“That is also something we’ve just added in the past couple of weeks,” Beauregard said.

In addition to clothes, you’ll find jewelry, toys, bedding and bath accessories, perfumes and small home appliances.

And if you can’t find what you need in stock, the store has two electronic kiosks that allow you to order anything in Kohl’s catalog and pay with a credit card. Beauregard said there’s no shipping or handling for anything ordered in the store.

The kiosks are something new Kohl’s is introducing, as are new electronic signs displaying prices and special deals. Beauregard says these signs are more environmentally friendly than paper signs and tags, and Dalton is one of the first stores to use them.

The Dalton store is just one of about 40 Kohl’s will open nationwide this year. That will bring the fast-growing retailer to more than 1,100 stores across the United States.

Beauregard says he’s amazed at how quickly the Dalton store went up.

“It was just a few months ago that there was nothing here but a pad,” he said.

The Kohl’s store is just the first part of a two-part project planned for the old Propex site on Shugart Road by the Greenville, S.C.-based developer RealtyLink. The second phase, on the northern part of the site, could include restaurants, offices or telecommunications companies.

The city used part of its share of the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) to build acceleration and deceleration lanes on Shugart at the Kohl’s, and Dalton Public Works Project Manager Andrew Parker says additional lanes will be built as the rest of the site is developed.

“We will also continue to monitor the traffic signals at the Home Depot and the Walmart entrances to make sure the timing is adequate to handle the traffic and make this development as safe and efficient as possible,” Parker said.

With three big retailers, the west side of Shugart Road is becoming quite a commercial hub, and some Dalton residents said Saturday they welcome that.

“We really need all of the business we can get. More places to shop, more jobs. I don’t see any problems,” said Joe Collins.

Is traffic a concern?

“Walmart and Home Depot have been there for years. Propex was there. It’s always been a commercial area,” said Jay Brown.

While the much of the west side of Shugart is zoned for commercial development, much of the east side and nearby Tibbs Road is zoned for residential. Officials say there are no plans to change that zoning.