Two big regional grocery chains made headlines Tuesday morning after Cincinnati-based The Kroger Co. said it plans to buy Harris Teeter Inc. for $2.4 billion. That merger got me wondering: What about all the Harris Teeter stores planned for the Washington region?

Although no one would give specific plans for the Washington region, it appears the stores in various planning phases here will remain Harris Teeter brands and not open as Kroger stores.

Harris Teeter will keep its name after the merger and will maintain “our management teams and our new store growth plan,” Harris Teeter spokeswoman Danna Jones said in an emailed statement.

Both companies have said that existing Harris Teeter stores will not change over to the Kroger name.

There are at least four confirmed Harris Teeter stores under construction in the region right now: one at The Yards Potomac Riverfront at 1212 Fourth St. SE, one at 8300 Wisconsin Ave. in Bethesda, one in Old Town Alexandria at 700 N. Asaph St. and one at Clarksburg Village in Montgomery County.

Harris Teeter is also reportedly in talks for three other developments in the District: 7820 Eastern Ave. NW, the McMillan sand filtration site, and Florida Avenue and Ninth Street NW, DC UrbanTurf has reported.