YOKOTA AIR BASE – The Army & Air Force Exchange Service has turned the Yokota Community Center into a one-stop shopping destination with the grand opening of its new-and-improved main Exchange.
Col. Kenneth Moss, 374th Airlift Wing commander, and Col. John Winkler, 374th Mission Support Group commander, helped Col. Scott Maskery, Exchange Pacific Region commander, cut the ribbon on the $4.7 million renovation June 1.
The update brings merchandise previously available at the Yokota BXtra, including furniture, pet supplies, sporting goods, toys, gardening supplies and more, to the main Exchange—a total of 22,500 square feet in new sales floor space.
The upgraded store also boasts a modern look, with an improved store layout and new flooring, paint finishes, graphics and fixtures. Food court and mall concessions have moved to the first floor, and the Pizza Hut previously located at the BXtra has moved to the main store food court.
The BXtra had been located across a busy highway from the Yokota Community Center. Its consolidation into the main store makes shopping at Yokota more convenient than ever, Maskery said.
“With the Exchange, BXtra, commissary and several name-brand restaurants under one roof, service members and families can get all of their shopping and dining needs met with one trip,” Maskery said. “Additionally, using existing space has proved far more cost-effective for both the installation and Exchange compared to investing in new construction.”
The Exchange moved out of the old BXtra building because the 374th Airlift Wing needed the additional space for equipment storage. As a result, the installation funded $2.5 million of the project, with the remainder paid for by Exchange earnings. Work started on the upgrade in November 2016, with the main store portion taking more than a year to complete.
Built in 2001, the Yokota Community Center was last renovated in 2011. More than 200,000 square feet of the building house Exchange operations, including the main store, Military Clothing store, barber shop, beauty salon, food court and mall.
Shopping and dining at the Exchange benefits Airmen and military families as 100 percent of Exchange earnings support the Yokota community. In 2017, the Exchange contributed $507,868 to Yokota Quality-of-Life programs.
The Yokota Main Exchange is in Building 570. The store is open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. on Sundays.
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Since 1895, the Army & Air Force Exchange Service (Exchange) has gone where Soldiers, Airmen and their families go to improve the quality of their lives by providing valued goods and services at exclusive military pricing. The Exchange is the 56th-largest retailer in the United States. Its earnings provided $2.4 billion in dividends to support military morale, welfare and recreation programs over the last 10 years. The Exchange is a non-appropriated fund entity of the Department of Defense and is directed by a Board of Directors. To find out more about the Exchange history and mission or to view recent press releases please visit our website at http://www.shopmyexchange.com or follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/ExchangePAO.
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Media Notes:
For more information or to schedule an interview with an Exchange representative please contact Conner Hammett, 214-312-2714 or [email protected].
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