A partially vacant shopping center along a key commercial corridor in Clinton Township is getting new life and will be redeveloped as a Meijer store, which township officials hope will spur more development in the area.
West Bloomfield-based Breakpoint Investments has acquired a former Big Lots store in the Regional Shopping Center at Gratiot and 15 Mile, which it plans to replace with a 76,000-square-foot Meijer. Clinton Township Supervisor Paul Gieleghem said a rising tide “lifts all the boats.”
“We believe this will be a catalyst for future growth and redevelopment,” he said.
Gieleghem said the location will just have the grocery store components of Meijer, including the deli, bakery and pharmacy. It won’t have the electronics, garden center, toys or other similar items that larger Meijer stores have.
He said the next steps for the project are tearing down old structures and conducting underground work, including building water lines and sewer lines. He said the underground work is expected to start “very shortly,” and the township is hoping the Meijer will open in spring 2028.
Ars Atisha, one of Breakpoint Investment’s principals, said he and the other principal are “excited” to contribute to the redevelopment of that area of Clinton Township and “help drive its continued growth and investment,” according to a press release.
“This project represents an opportunity to transform this vacant property into something that benefits residents, businesses, and the entire community,” he said.
Need for the store
Gieleghem said the township has been trying to bring a grocery store to the south end of the community for “well over” a decade. There are only a few grocery stores in the southern part of the township.
“This is huge for us,” he said of the project.
The Meijer will join a Lowe’s Home Improvement store, an AMC movie theater and other businesses in the Regional Shopping Center.
Gieleghem said a teppanyaki grill that has been vacant for over 10 years will be demolished to make way for a Meijer gas station.
Filling vacancies
Gieleghem said that filling vacancies in shopping centers is a “huge part” of expanding the township’s tax base. While other large Macomb County communities such as Warren and Sterling Heights have large industrial corridors, Clinton Township is largely a bedroom community.
“When you don’t have that strong industrial tax base, that means that you wind up having to limit services to what your tax base can afford you,” he said.
He said Clinton Township has mainly residents and commercial districts, the latter of which are “all under fire from Amazon.”
“As the notion of shopping and commercial districts change, that erodes the tax base,” he said.
Gratiot corridor planning initiative
The project comes as its Downtown Development Authority continues a broader planning initiative focused on the future of the Gratiot corridor. The planning process is meant to identify short-term improvements and long-term goals that will guide future investment and redevelopment throughout the district, the township press release said.
The township is encouraging residents to complete the DDA’s Streetscape and Placemaking Survey.
“It will help drive what improvements people want to see,” Gieleghem said, adding that it’s an opportunity for people to tell the township “this is what we’d like to see on Gratiot.”
asnabes@detroitnews.com
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: A Meijer store will replace vacant Big Lots in this Macomb County community
Reporting by Anne Snabes, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Anne Snabes, The Detroit News | USA TODAY Network
