Thirteen Colorado Springs-area Safeways would be sold and taken over by a new owner as part of plan by Kroger and Albertsons to sell hundreds of stores nationwide — a move the grocery chains hope will help them stave off court challenges to their planned $24.6 billion merger.

A list of 579 stores to be sold in 19 states was released Tuesday by Ohio-based Kroger, which operates King Soopers groceries in Colorado, and Albertsons, based in Idaho and the owner of Safeway.

In Colorado, 91 Safeway and Albertsons stores out of 105 will be sold to New Hampshire-based C&S Wholesale Grocers, which operates the Piggly Wiggly and Grand Union supermarket brands.

Up to now, the number of stores to be sold as part of the Kroger-Albertsons merger was known, but the list released Tuesday spelled out exact locations.

Of local Safeways to be sold, 11 are in Colorado Springs: 3275 W. Colorado Ave.; 2890 N. Powers Blvd.; 6529 S. Academy Blvd.; 1425 S. Murray Blvd.; 1920 S. Nevada Ave.; 840 Village Center Drive; 7055 Austin Bluffs Parkway; 2210 Wahsatch Ave.; 5060 N. Academy Blvd.; 8750 N. Union Blvd.; and 4405 Centennial Blvd.

Safeway stores also would be sold at 624 Colorado 105 in Monument and 1101 E. U.S. 24 in Woodland Park.

Three additional Springs-area Safeways, however, weren’t on the list of stores to be sold and their fate isn’t known. Those locations are: 1121 N. Circle Drive in Colorado Springs; 7655 McLaughlin Road in unincorporated Falcon outside the Springs; and 6925 Mesa Ridge Parkway in Fountain, south of town.

A Kroger spokeswoman in the chain’s Cincinnati headquarters couldn’t be reached for comment on the status of those three stores.

Other Safeway stores in Colorado to be sold include locations in Denver, Aurora, Boulder and Littleton. Two Albertsons stores — one in Durango and another in Pueblo — are also to be sold.

Kroger also plans to divest two distribution centers in Denver and its Denver Dairy Plant in the Park Hill neighborhood.

No King Soopers stores would be sold as part of the list released Tuesday.

Kroger and Albertsons announced in October 2022 their plans to merge, saying the combined company would be better able to complete against Walmart, Amazon and other grocery rivals. The chains said the merger would help them cut operating costs, and savings would be re-invested and result in lower prices for consumers.

Kroger and Albertsons initially said they’d sell more than 400 stores in response to concerns by federal and state regulators. In April, the grocery chains increased the number of stores to be sold to 579.

The Federal Trade Commission and nine states, including Colorado, have sued to block the merger, arguing it would result in less competition and higher prices for shoppers, among other concerns.

A Denver court recently dismissed Kroger’s plea to drop the Colorado lawsuit after arguing the state’s case was redundant to the federal case its facing. But the Denver court ruled states have equal anti-trust enforcement powers as federal powers.

The local grocery workers union, meanwhile, spoke out against Tuesday’s list of stores to be sold and said the merger shows how widespread the impacts would be across communities if an “untested, inexperienced” grocer takes over those stores, UFCW Union Local 7 president Kim Cordova said in a statement.

“Kroger and Albertsons have known what stores they plan to divest for months, and the last-ditch release of the list today is an underhanded attempt to influence the courts and create the perception that the mega-merger is close to final, creating more uncertainty for our members,” Cordova said.

C&S Wholesalers doesn’t operate stores in Colorado and most of the western states where divestitures are happening, a cause of concern for Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser.

But Albertsons consultant Scott Moses said last month that C&S Wholesalers has a vast national supply chain network giving it more structure to be sustainable in new markets, and keeping the Safeway name will help maintain stability for customers in the state.