GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – For the first time in decades, Shopko won’t be an option as shoppers head out to try to score Black Friday deals.
The buildings have been mostly empty since the company’s last day in June, and that may not change, at some locations, anytime soon.
Leah Weycker, executive director for the Military Avenue Business District, tells FOX 11 she has received plenty of calls asking about the street’s old Shopko.
“One woman wanted to put a roller-skating rink in there and we also had interest in doing indoor pickle ball.”
While those ideas might seem farfetched, Weycker says combining a few interested parties, like the two previously mentioned, might be the route to go.
“It’s such a cool site for redevelopment and with the spa next door and McDonalds just another door down, it could be a very good walking destination too.”
The building is for sale, according to a person managing the property for its Chicago-based owners.
Green Bay Economic Development Director Kevin Vonck tells FOX 11 the city would like to see something long-term, rather than quick fixes like storage, which some communities have chosen to do.
“I think it’s really important that we just don’t jump necessarily on the first thing that comes through, that we really evaluate what is the highest and best use for there long term.”
As for Green Bay’s old east side store, some Brown County supervisors had suggested looking at the building as a potential new library location.
But Vonck doesn’t believe that idea ever had much traction.
“In a lot of these areas, we’ve talked about having these massive parking lots. We’d like to see some additional residential development. I don’t know if these buildings themselves are prone to that type of redevelopment, but are there things that could be used that would really compliment things that are going on there?”
Shopko started closing stores in December of last year and announced in March that all stores would be closed by the end of June.
