Whole Foods scheduled to open May 11 in Bellingham

The remodeling of the new Bellingham Whole Foods store is going well, so much so that it could open a month earlier than planned.

Whole Foods has scheduled its opening day at the Lakeway Center for Wednesday, May 11, said spokeswoman Susan Livingston. The 51,292-square-foot grocery store at 1030 Lakeway Drive also will have a pizza restaurant, coffee/juice bar and a variety of other features. The grocery section will include meat, seafood, dairy, wine and bakery departments. It was originally scheduled to open sometime in June.

“It (the remodel) has been very smooth,” Livingston said.

The company will be busy installing the fixtures and soon will begin stocking the store.

Whole Foods will be hiring about 150 workers in the coming weeks and getting things organized with between 40 and 70 local and regional producers.

The company has been awarding grants to local schools for healthier meal programs. The Bellingham school district was recently given $120,000 to try to improve lunch programs. The grant will fund several aspects including workshops, an assessment of the current program and technical assistance.

Several elementary and middle schools in Bellingham as well as the Lummi Nation school also will receive school garden grants from the Whole Kids Foundation.

This story was originally published April 1, 2016 at 2:31 AM with the headline "Whole Foods scheduled to open May 11 in Bellingham."