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SACRAMENTO — Safeway has announced the opening of their new location in the Crocker Village Shopping Center.

A “soft launch” will take place on March 5 from 6 p.m. to midnight before their official launch on March 6 at 5:30 a.m.

The store will serve as the primary anchor for the shopping center, which will include six anchor tenants with over 30 retailers, eateries and services.

Although long-awaited, the opening has been met with controversy as the supermarket finds itself in the middle of an ongoing legal battle with the city of Sacramento.

The city council voted to deny the store a permit to build a 16-pump gas station on site. A Sacramento Superior Court judge later invalidated the city’s decision and accused the council of voting out of prejudice against Petrovich Development Co., the Crocker Village builder.

The Sacramento Bee reports that Paul Petrovich, developer of the project, rewrote his lease with Safeway to give them permission to “close their store if the fuel center is ultimately denied.”

The city has appealed the ruling and the case is still pending.

The project developer said the store originally planned to employ 200 residents of the Oak Park neighborhood, but without the gas station, the supermarket will now hire half that amount.

Hisani Stenson contributed to this report.