New Retail Updates for Downriver, Michigan

[Hudsons81]

With a large amount of retail investments being made in this Detroit suburb, 2014 definitely has been a very busy year for Taylor, Michigan.

In October, demolition began on the long-vacant Mervyn's store at Southland Center to be replaced by a new Cinemark theater which will open in 2015. This was first announced in July. In addition, a major remodeling process of Southland itself began at around the same time.

In addition, the former Spotlight 10 (former (AMC) Star 10) is being converted into an MJR Digital Cinemas location that should open sometime soon.

In the 12-month period ending on June 30, new retailers had set up shop in Southland Center, including Pink and Francesca's. Ulta opened in August in the space formerly occupied by Forever 21, which relocated to the former Borders in another area of the mall in 2013. Last month, Rouse Properties announced that H&M would be opening a store in Southland and today announced that Zumeiz is also opening in the mall.

Next, Menard's is opening a new store on the site formerly occupied by the recently-vacated Gibraltar Trade Center and an infamous dead strip mall at Eureka Road and I-75 dubbed simply "The Plaza". Vitamin Shoppe is already building a new location in the outlot of the future Menard's. Plans still have to be finalized, though.

The long-vacant Media Play in the Taylor Retail Center further up Eureka was subdivided into three tenants in the late summer-Sky Zone, Party City and Lumber Liquidators. Panera Bread relocated from neighboring Southgate to the long-vacant Rio Bravo in the Retail Center's outlot on November 2.

Henry Ford Health System OptimEyes also relocated from Southgate, erecting a new structure at Eureka and Racho.

Finally, Volunteers of America Michigan broke ground back in October on a new three-story, 77-unit senior housing facility on Superior Parkway north of Southland Center.

However, there was just one minor problem: the Southland Center Sbarro closed in March as it was one of many shut down following Sbarro's Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. That space is still vacant as of November 21.

Has your area gone through a renaissance on this scale in 2014 as well?

[TheFugitive]

Nice to hear the Detroit area is starting to rebound.   Seeing as it's my wife's hometown and all.

[Hudsons81]

Nice to hear the Detroit area is starting to rebound.   Seeing as it's my wife's hometown and all.

Well, specifically, the Downriver area as a whole is experiencing some sort of retail rebound as more retailers begin to run out of room in the seemingly-endless suburban sprawl of Oakland and Macomb Counties (and to a lesser extent western Wayne County) and begin looking at the Downriver communities (which have, for some reason, had some sort of "underdog" relation with the rest of the Detroit area) for future expansion. A clear example of that are two retailers that would be suited more for Oakland County, H&M and Zumeiz (in fact they already have Oakland County locations), both announcing locations at Southland Center in Downriver in the past month.

Even the city itself is in a major rebound right now-mostly, despite the bankruptcy and all, though there are still a lot of vacant buildings.

[TheFugitive]

My wife is a Macomb County gal, but she has some family living Downriver.

Plus my daughter now lives in Toledo.  Will have to encourage her to check it out.

[Hudsons81]

Now on to another Detroit-area city that has been on a similar rebound this year.

Nearby, in Woodhaven, Planet Fitness opened in the old Kroger store in October. Firehouse Subs and Spa Envy also opened locations.

Plans are now getting close to becoming official for the former Kmart store, with one tenant already signing up-a large beer store.

A Shell station on West Road closed this month to be torn down (along with an adjacent doctor's office) so that a larger gas station can be built.

But most importantly-and this is not retail-related-officials are still working hard to begin a grade-separation project at a Canadian National railroad crossing at Allen and Van Horn Roads, where trains often cause gridlock that has resulted from the suburban sprawl that resulted in the mass of big-box stores a mile north at the intersection with West Road, yet the crossing is still at-grade, dating back to when West and Allen was nothing more than Kmart, Kroger with it's associated strip mall and an oil refinery. The city attempted to apply for a grant to the United States DOT for this project, but it was instead awarded to the M-1 Rail streetcar project in Detroit.

[Hudsons81]

Taylor's renaissance continues on this year.

Two days after abruptly closing, Pizza Papalis is relocating it's Dearborn location to the former Fuddrucker's on Pardee Road in front of Meijer.

Pizza Papalis is a local chain that started in the Greektown district of Detroit that has since gone one to open locations across Metro Detroit and even as far south as Toledo, Ohio.

[Hudsons81]

Just a few weeks into 2015, the former Shell station at West and Hall Roads was torn down to be replaced by a new station.

MOD Pizza has plans to open in the former Radio Shack at West and Allen Roads.

Black Rock Bar and Grill, a high-end steakhouse, will take over part of the former Kmart at the same intersection.

Finally, sit-down restaurants have been interested in erecting locations in front of the Emagine Theater on Allen Road.

http://www.thenewsherald.com/articles/2015/08/14/news/doc55cdf778ce23e319703743.txt

[Hudsons81]

The former Gibraltar Trade Center is currently being demolished. A Menard's will open on the site in the spring of 2017.

http://www.thenewsherald.com/articles/2015/09/16/news/doc55f9bbfac7aef528793297.txt

[TheFugitive]

Interesting.  When I lived in Michigan in the late 80's the Gibraltar Trade Center
used to do a heck of a lot of advertising on radio.

[Hudsons81]

Visionworks just opened a couple weeks ago in a strip mall in front of the Meijer store.

http://www.thenewsherald.com/articles/2015/10/01/news/doc560d365143367248524945.txt

Pizza Papalis will open on November 9 in the former Fuddrucker's which later became American Pie for a while. It's also in front of Meijer. This comes after Pizza Papalis' Dearborn location abruptly closed in March.

http://www.thenewsherald.com/articles/2015/10/01/news/doc560d5eac46544969420449.txt

Primanti Brothers will replace Ruby Tuesday at Southland Center in 2016. This will be the first Michigan location the Pittsburgh-based deli-style restaurant.

http://www.thenewsherald.com/articles/2015/10/01/news/doc560d801af413e514554154.txt

[Hudsons81]

Meanwhile, in Woodhaven, Chipotle Mexican Grill will be taking over the soon-to-be-former Panera Bread at the southeast corner of West and Allen in early 2016. Panera is about to relocate to a new building across the street with a drive-thru. MOD Pizza will open next month in the former Radio Shack next to the soon-to-be-former Panera.

http://www.thenewsherald.com/articles/2015/10/28/news/doc562fcdb485a9e304220394.txt

[Hudsons81]

A new Hardee's is now going up where the West and Hall Shell station used to be.

(photo courtesy of https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10205298452171312&set=p.10205298452171312&type=3&theater)