Still No Ruling in Alpha Beta-Lucky Merger

A federal judge on Tuesday once again extended a temporary order blocking the $2.5-million merger of Alpha Beta and Lucky supermarkets.

In his one-page order, U.S. District Judge David Kenyon cited the complexity of an antitrust lawsuit that seeks to block the combination.

“The court is mindful of the need for a prompt ruling in this matter,” Kenyon wrote. But he gave no indication of how soon that might be.

The ruling concerns an antitrust lawsuit filed by Atty. Gen. John K. Van de Kamp. That action was brought after the purchase in June of Lucky Stores by Irvine-based American Stores, which also owns Alpha Beta. Lucky operates 354 markets in California, while American operates 249 Alpha Beta markets and one superstore in San Diego under the “Advantage” name.

Kenyon first halted the merger Sept. 7, when he ordered the chains to operate separately, at least until attorneys argued the case in court nine days later. Since then, he has twice postponed deciding the case, both times saying he needed more time to consider the issues.

Would Be No. 1

Attorneys for American could not be reached for comment. Deputy Atty. Gen. Chester Horn said Tuesday’s extension shows that the judge “is giving this matter the very serious deliberation that it needs.”

If completed, the merger would make American Stores the nation’s largest supermarket owner.

In a related matter, Van de Kamp confirmed that “at least an agreement in principle” has been reached between his office and the Vons and Safeway chains.

Van de Kamp opposed the acquisition by Vons earlier this year of Safeway’s Southern California markets and other assets on the same antitrust grounds cited in the American and Lucky merger. But he has not sued to block the action because negotiations to mitigate have been underway.

In an interview Tuesday, Van de Kamp declined to reveal details of the agreement, saying only that “it’s relatively satisfactory. It deals with many of our concerns.”