By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

ALABASTER – Alabaster’s newest grocery store is planning to open its doors in the next couple of months, and will hold a hiring event on Nov. 3 for those looking to work at the new store.

The Aldi grocery store, which is being constructed at the intersection of U.S. 31 and Shelby County 11 in Alabaster, is “slated to open later this year,” and will hold the hiring event on Monday, Nov. 3 from 8 a.m.-noon and from 1-5 p.m. at the Hampton Inn and Suites at 232 Cahaba Valley Road in Pelham.

During the hiring event, the company will interview those interested in store associate, shift manager and manager trainee positions. Store associates make $10 per hour, shift managers make between $10-$14 per hour and manager trainees make $19.50 per hour.

Applicants must be 18 years or older, have a high school diploma or GED, must be able to work anytime between 6 a.m.-11 p.m. any day of the week, must pass background checks and drug screenings and must be able to lift 45 pounds. Retail experience is preferred and retail experience is preferred for manager trainees.

Crews began working on the 17,651-square-foot Alabaster Aldi in June, and have since constructed the majority of the building’s exterior. The future site of the Aldi store is behind the city of Alabaster’s welcome sign and flags at the intersection of U.S. 31 and Shelby County 11.

The Ohio-based Deerfield Construction and the Chattanooga, Tenn.-based Morgan Construction Company are the contractors for the project.

Project plans call for the store to offer access from U.S. 31 and from Shelby County 11, and call for improvements to the two roads to allow the access points. The store’s main parking area will face Shelby County 11, and a smaller parking area will face U.S. 31.

During a May meeting, the Shelby County Commission approved a right-of-way acquisition from Aldi to aid the property’s development. The project will include relocating utilities and providing proper drainage in the area, as well as adding right- and left-hand turn lanes from Shelby County 11 to the property, according to County Engineer Randy Cole.

The Alabaster store will be Aldi’s second in Shelby County and its eighth in the Birmingham metropolitan area. The company opened a 17,500-square-foot store off U.S. 31 in Pelham in March 2011.