Lofer to convert former car dealership into Billa supermarket

A Billa supermarket will move into a former car dealership in Lofer, avoiding the need to seal additional land, ORF reported. The conversion is scheduled to begin on September 1.

The existing Billa branch, located just beyond Lofer’s municipal boundary, is not ideal for deliveries. REWE, Billa’s parent company, and the market town of Lofer have been working on a solution for local residents and visitors to the Saalachtal since June 2024.

The new branch will cover around 800 square metres, with a bus stopping directly outside. The Lofer municipal council unanimously backed the project.

“Billa’s reuse of the building is an absolute gain for the town,” Mayor Norbert Meindl of the Austrian People’s Party said. He added that bus route 260 and a road underpass would be almost directly outside the store, while the move would bring two other larger supermarkets closer together.

Meindl said the former car dealership was unsuitable for housing because it is in a commercial zone next to the busy Pinzgauer Straße, or B311. Instead, the municipality plans to build 32 subsidised apartments opposite the senior citizens’ residence, including 13 units for assisted living.

Salzburg state councillor Martin Zauner of the Freedom Party said the supermarket move would improve the Saalachtal and could serve as an example for similar projects. He said the building was being put to good use, as in a comparable former Kika property in Saalfelden.