BEECHER | Walter Lagestee Inc., operator of Walt's Food Centers, has purchased family owned Knuth's Country Market food store in the Prairie Pointe Shopping Centre for an undisclosed sum.

The 25,000-square-foot supermarket has been owned and operated by Dave and John Knuth, two grandsons of the founder of the original Knuth's. It moved from its original location to its current home at 1111 Dixie Highway in 2002.

The store will close at 3 p.m. Sunday and "hopefully" reopen under the Walt's banner Friday, said John Lagestee Jr., grandson of the Walt's chain's founder and general manager of privately owned Lagestee Inc.

Between Sunday and Friday, the about tstore's perishables will be transferred to other Walt's locations and computers and front-end systems will be changed to meet those used by the formerly six-store Walt's chain, Lagestee said. Walt's operates stores in Dyer, Crete, Homewood, South Holland, Tinley Park and Frankfort.

"We look forward to serving the community of Beecher," he said Friday. "Our negoitations with the Knuth family have been amicable. It is our hope to enlarge the store and to make some improvements."

Current Knuth's employees are being offered an opportunity to apply for jobs with Walt's, Lagestee said. Some may temporarily transferred to other Walt's location to learn its systems, and some Walt's employees may be transferred to the Beecher store to help with the transition, he said.'

The Knuths announced the sale in a press release, saying the sale was a difficult decision, but they felt it was time to move on. They expressed confidence Walt's will continue to serve the community in the same manner as the Knuth family has for more than 90 years.

"Their multi-store operation should only increase buying opportunities for the community and its consumers," the release said. "... We have undoubting belief that Walt's family values will be a perfect fit for the Beecher community."