It's been a somewhat dull week for development news. I am expecting to see an announcement soon from WMU about who was awarded the design contract for their new dorm plans along Stadium Drive. Also hoping that the BRA will eventually reveal some more information about several parcels in Rivers Edge District that they have been trying to get redeveloped. Until then (or until something else unexpected comes along), most of the news is related to some big box and strip mall developments...
1. Ace Hardware has been announced as one of the first confirmed tenants for the 'Midtown Marketplace' redevelopment, located on the
north side of Howard Street, between S. Westnedge Ave. and S. Park St. They are expected to open in May, in a 12,000 SF space. We also know that there will be a 28,000 SF grocery store to anchor the development. The Shina Group, out of Detroit, bought the former Harding's Market property in mid-2015. Other possible (but unconfirmed) tenants include a coffee shop, dry cleaners, fitness center, and / or restaurant. All in all, this is good news for the neighborhood.
2. HomeGoods Inc. has a 'Coming Soon' sign up along Westnedge, in Portage. They will probably be open within a month's time.
My photo, from December:
3. It has been announced that the former Menards building,
near Crossroads Mall, will become a Blain's Farm & Fleet store. This company is based out of Wisconsin, where it opertes 38 stores currently. It is expanding into Michigan with this store and a second location in Jackson. They are kind of like Menards / TSC / Home Depot / Lowes all rolled into one. They will be constructing a 30,000 SF automotive center addition to the existing 79,000 SF building, resulting in a total building size of 109,000 SF. It will be interesting to see how they do.
Here's a proposed rendering of the Jackson store, will will occupy a former K-Mart. We can probably expect something similar here:
Source:
MLive / Courtesy of Blain's Farm and Fleet
4. The former Family Christian Store at the Westnedge Corners strip mall (
NE corner of S. Westnedge Ave. & Kilgore Rd.) is slated to become a fitness center. Family Christian Stores, which until last year was the nation's largest chain of Christian book and merchandise stores, announced it was closing all of its 240 stores across 36 states after filing for bankrupcy in 2015 and after 85 years in business. The entire mall at this high-traffic intersection will be getting a makeover. There was a crane on site today that I'm guessing was probably being utilized to replace rooftop equipment.