The news photo of Steve Schulwitz Sue Perenchio, on the left, cutting equipment for Alicia Bishop when he was at work at Joann Fabric in Alpena on Friday. Joann Fabrication closes all of its stores in the United States and already performs closing sales.
Alpena – The southern corridor of the US -23 was once the main shopping center in Alpena, where people went shopping in places like the Alpena, Kmart, Midway / Giantway shopping center and the Neiman family market.
Over the past decade, many companies – old and new – have closed and the number of vacant buildings added, and local development leaders and their partners are trying to find new tenants to fill empty spaces.
From 2020 at the start of this year, the US-23 corridor lost the companies noted above, as well as Peebles, Rite Aid, Big Lots, Joann Fabric and Crafts, and even the longtime burger King.
Alpena was not the only place where these channels closed because these companies have closed stores in hundreds of locations, mainly due to bankruptcy.
A new hardware store, an Ollie’s point of sale and several other small businesses have opened in recent years, and the program entering all-inclusive care for the center of Northeast Michigan should soon open its doors.
But above all, it was a challenge to attract the largest retailers and restaurants on this side of the city.
The Young apparatus and the owner of Bob Young furniture said that when companies close, it is always a concern. He said that what is transformed in the south of Alpena is not unprecedented because he can remember when companies have left the city center, including his father’s affairs, and moved in the US-23 US corridor because this is where business began to explode.
Young said he thought that the current commercial climate on US-23 South is part of a cycle and that the area will rebound. He said it might seem a different touch, but he added, there are still a lot of things that make the corridor attractive.
“The highway is going nowhere and we are not going anywhere,” said Young. “The highway is always a main way in and outside the city and there is a lot of traffic. I feel really good in the future and I always think there is room for growth. This can end with a mixture of businesses and not of large area stores and there could even be new neighborhoods. No matter what it is, I think the future is still brilliant. »»
Young, which has been in its current location since the 1980s, said that it thought that the popularity of online purchases has made it difficult for retail stores, especially in a small rural town.
“Their corporate model has become expired,” he said.
Larry Clark, who was the president of the now missing South Bay group who directed improvements throughout the corridor and promoted development and growth, said that it was sad to see companies close and that people lose their jobs, but that also creates new opportunities.
“We are all worried when you see a business close after the other, but if you look at it, all companies go bankrupt or go bankrupt,” said Clark. “The corridor seems to have lost part of its brilliance, but I like hope. I just think it needs a little attention and concentration because I think there are still a lot of opportunities there. »»
Young and Clark said it was good to see all the development on the M-32 corridor, but because commercial cycles change, there could be a time when things move and the southern corridor could benefit from it.
“The more congested it is, the more traffic there is, it can become a problem,” said Clark. “It is expensive to buy land and build there and on the southern corridor, you have more purchasing power because it is not as expensive and does not make such an important investment.”
The director of economic development of the Alpena Region’s Chamber of Commerce, Mike Mahler, said that it was always a concern when companies close because people lose their jobs and that limits the products and services that residents can choose. He said that businesses and business practices change, and sometimes they work for the best, and sometimes they don’t. Mahler said that buyers today have more practical ways to spend their money and that jobs that are lost when a business ends, moves to another type of business.
“Today, many people are shopping after the hours for the items they bought in places like Joann Fabrics and they can find the same product online and order it and it arrives at their door 24 hours later,” said Mahler. “Today, this represents progress. The jobs that were traditionally in a brick and mortar store, such as a person of action and cashier, have been moved to online control centers sent to an execution center where a person or a robot picks it, puts it in the box and sends it in a palette where they are found in a sorting installation and placed in a truck or a truck and delivered by a driver. “”
The supervisor of the canton of Alpena, Abbi Kaszubowski, said that it was always the objective of the canton to promote a strong and dynamic business community, and the canton has committed to support local entrepreneurs, to attract new businesses and to create an environment where companies can prosper. She said that some companies have closed, other new and exciting companies have also opened.
Kaszubowski said the canton will continue to work with its partners, developers and investors to help fill the buildings that will soon be vacant.
“Ideally, an anchor department will come in the southern corridor and will help strengthen business,” she said. “We are convinced that with the knowledge and expertise of the offers of Alpena Targets, we can progress towards this.”
Steve Schulwitz can be contacted at 989-358-5689 or sschulwitz@thealpenanews.com. Follow it on x @ ss_alpenanews.com.