Merriam is another step down on the road to bringing Ikea to the metro area.

Ikea officials and city planners met Wednesday night to talk about details including signage, traffic and transportation, according to KCTV5, The Star’s reporting partner.

The proposed 349,000-square-foot Ikea store would be built along the east side of Interstate 35 at the Johnson Drive exit on 18 acres to be bought from DDR Corp.

The shopping center that now stands on the site was built in 2008 with Circuit City as a main anchor, but that company went bankrupt when the recession hit. The location has not had a permanent tenant.

IKEA plans to demolish the shopping center and rebuild a new store.

There are more than 330 Ikea stores in 40 countries. There are 38 IKEA stores in the United States, but none yet in Kansas or Missouri.

The Swedish company expects to open the store in the fall of 2014.

| The Star