Ikea plans first Florida store

Ikea plans to build its first Florida store in the City of Sunrise, located in western Broward County, as part of the Gateway at Sawgrass. Construction could begin in late Spring 2006, with the grand opening of Ikea Sunrise slated for Summer 2007. Currently the Ikea nearest to Florida is the Atlanta store that opened in June 2005.

The 20-acre Ikea site in the City of Sunrise will include a 293,000-sq.-ft. store with 1,100 parking spaces in a two-level parking deck in front of the store. As part of the planned 25-acre center, the store will be adjacent to 40,000 square feet of specialty retail shops and restaurants.

"We are very excited about being part of the future 'Gateway at Sawgrass,'" said Dave Iemolo, Ikea real estate manager. "We have been looking for the right location in South Florida for quite some time and now have found it. We look forward to bringing Ikea closer to existing customers — while also introducing our unique family-friendly shopping experience to new customers in South Florida."

Besides nearly 10,000 exclusively designed items, Ikea Sunrise will feature three model homes, 50 room settings, a supervised children's play area as well as a 250-seat restaurant. Other family-friendly features will include a 'Children's Ikea' area in the showroom, baby care rooms, preferred parking and play areas throughout the store.