A former Shopko in West Bend is on the cusp of being transformed into one of the city’s newest commercial shopping centers.
The City Plan Commission is slated to review a site plan on April 6 that involves renovating the vacant store at 1710 South Main Street into a retail strip featuring Five Below, Big Lots, and Home Goods and Sierra, according to a city press release.
Under the redevelopment plan submitted by CORTA West Bend, LLC, Big Lots would occupy the largest portion of the shopping center at 35,000 square feet. Home Goods would occupy 22,500 square feet, Sierra 20,000 square feet, and Five Below, 8,600 square feet.
“This project is moving quickly, and we look forward to reviewing it in detail at the upcoming Plan Commission meeting,” West Bend mayor Christophe E. Jenkins said in the press release. “Thank you to CORTA West Bend, LLC, for investing in West Bend and securing four nationally-recognized retailers.”
Construction is expected to start this spring and possibly be completed by the end of the year.
Florida-based Corta Development bought the 94,000-square-foot Shopko building for nearly $2.03 million in late December. At the time, it was Corta’s third acquisition of a former Shopko property in the state. Cory Presnick, principal at Corta, told the BizTimes that he had also bought properties in Fond du Lac and Sheboygan. Corta has since redeveloped the Fond du Lac store into Hobby Lobby and Big Lots stores.
Those transformations, and the plan for West Bend’s Shopko, are far different that the fate that awaits other buildings that once belonged to the bankrupt discount retailer.
Larkspur Acquisitions, also of Florida, has plans to turn vacant Shopkos in Beloit, Racine and Kenosha in to self-storage facilities.
