Great Falls, Mont.-based Western lifestyle retailer Big R Stores has started work on a $4 million expansion of its Coeur d’Alene store.

The expansion project will add 50,000 square feet of floor space to the store at 170 E. Kathleen, nearly tripling its current size of 27,000 square feet, says Brian Cravens, the store manager.

Coeur d’Alene-based Young Construction Group of Idaho Inc. is the contractor on the project, and H2A Architects, also of Coeur d’Alene, designed it.

“The expansion definitely will be done before spring,” Cravens says, adding that crews were set to pour footings for the project last week.

He says most of the expansion will be retail space, and some will be warehouse space.

Big R Stores outlets carry a variety of farm and ranch equipment and supplies, Western and work clothes, hardware, and lawn and garden supplies.

Cravens says the Coeur d’Alene store will expand lines of products it carries, including adding sporting goods.

The store currently has 40 employees, and Cravens says the expansion will lead to 15 to 20 additional hires.

The store is among the smallest in the Big R chain, he says, adding, “We need to get bigger.”

Big R’s parent company, CSWW Inc., operates 10 Big R Stores outlets in Washington, Idaho, and Montana. Its Spokane-area outlets include the 55,600-square-foot Mead store at 1522 N. Newport Highway and the 32,100-square-foot Spokane Valley store at 8703 E. Trent.

The company last year bought 30 acres of land on the West Plains for a future store and distribution center, but hasn’t disclosed yet when it plans to construct facilities there.