84 Lumber closes Minnesota stores

Citing a dearth of building activity in the St. Paul and Minneapolis region, 84 Lumber closed its two locations in that metro area. Employees were informed yesterday, said Jeff Nobers, vp-corporate communications.

“Building activity is almost non-existent in some of these markets,” Nobers said.

The two locations are Hugo, 17 miles northeast of St. Paul, and Lakeville, 19 miles south of Minneapolis. Combined, the lumberyards employed 34 people.

With $3.7 billion in sales reported for 2006, 84 Lumber ranked third on HCN’s Pro Dealer Top 350 list.

Other national pro dealers are also scaling back their locations and personnel to cope with the continued downturn. Pro-Build Holdings has closed 20 locations in previous months, and Stock Building Supply has shuttered 22 stores and cut 20 percent of its work force, or approximately 3,500 people.

During an analyst conference call in July, Builders FirstSource revealed it had reduced its work force by 18 percent -- as measured by “full-time equivalent employees” -- during the second quarter of 2007