The sadness of watching a longtime retailer wind down its business and its workers lose their jobs can also bring new opportunities.
That’s the case with Kmart, which began liquidating its store at the corner of Highland Drive and South Caraway Road in late September.
Kmart could be replaced by as many as five different businesses and double the number of jobs, a real estate agent said.
Several national retailers have expressed interest in the 87,543-square-foot space as soon as Kmart announced its plans, Barry Phillips of Phillips Investments said. Kmart has leased the space continuously since October 1980, Phillips said.
Mark Young, president of the Jonesboro Regional Chamber of Commerce, said it’s always disappointing to see a business close.”However, Jonesboro continues to see growth in the retail and commercial sectors,” Young said. “The growth of the economy should lead to additional job creation opportunities.”
Haag-Brown Commercial Real Estate has been engaged to assure that the space won’t be vacant very long after Kmart departs.
“We are already in negotiations with national retailers about that space,” Josh Brown of Haag-Brown said Friday. “None of them have committed to it because it just now happened.”
Potential tenants are companies that haven’t been here before, he said.
“Some of them are grocery stores, some of them are soft good stores, some of them are hunting and fishing stores,” Brown said. “Without saying any specific names, it’s like, who do you drive to Memphis to shop at, or Little Rock, that aren’t in Jonesboro? Those are who the people are that we’re going after.”
Kmart has engaged Collier’s International to help with that effort. The sooner new tenants can be found, the sooner Kmart can terminate its lease with Phillips. Sears Holdings, parent company of Kmart, has closed more than 400 stores since 2012. Still, Sears Holdings Real Estate reports on its website that it owns more than 2,500 properties across the United States, including some vacant lots.
About 22,000 vehicles daily cross the Highland Drive-Caraway Road intersection in each direction, according to 2015 traffic counts by the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department. It’s the second-busiest intersection in Jonesboro.
Brown said the traffic alone will draw investors. But more importantly, the space can be offered at a fraction of the cost of new construction.
“An existing building always has the advantage over a raw piece of dirt,” Brown said.
If one major retailer doesn’t take the space, the Kmart building can be divided into four, Brown said.
An outpad in front of Kmart could also be developed into another restaurant, Brown added.
Based on the contacts his company has already had, Phillips said he’s optimistic.
“I think it’s going to be something that the citizens will be proud of,” Phillips said.
By Keith Inman, JonesboroSun Staff Writer
