Demolition of Kmart Building - Developer Details
The End of an Eyesore
The Kmart building at 1 Flower Valley Shopping Center Drive has been vacant since 2018. Several years ago the 10+ acre property was put up for auction and was purchased by Wallis Oil Company. Wallis Oil is known for several businesses including Mobil on the Run, Dirt Cheap, and Brite Worx. As the site sat vacant during this process the building became unsalvageable and an eyesore in the community.
Wallis Oil has successfully operated a Brite Worx 2.5 miles away from Flower Valley, at 475 N. Hwy 67, for over a decade. Due to their ongoing success at that location they have been wanting to expand their business in the Florissant community and open a second location. They approached the city in 2023 with plans to build a Brite Worx on one outparcel of the site in the rear of Aspen Dental. This small outparcel only accounts for about 15% of the total property. The City Council made a requirement in approving the plan for the Brite Worx that the vacant Kmart building had to be demolished as well, which Wallis Oil agreed to do. Had the City Council just voted the project down completely there is no telling where the site would be today and how long demolition and redevelopment would take in that scenario. There is a very real possibility that the site could have sat vacant for several more years without action.
A Future for This Site
Recently the Kmart building has been fenced off and Wallis Oil is working with the City of Florissant to obtain a demolition permit. It will be a great benefit to the community to see this blighted building demolished, and all without the use of any public money. As Kmart’s closed around the country many communities have been dealing with these vacant structures and several other cities have even had to use public funds to raze them when developers did not take the sites over.
As the intersection of New Halls Ferry and N. Hwy 67 has the highest traffic counts of any intersection in the North County trade area, we are confident that once the building is demolished the remaining 85% of the site (8+ acres) will be marketed and desirable for new development. The new development could consist of several new businesses, and possibilities include retail and restaurants. The owner of the property has been in contact with companies interested in Florissant, and the Florissant Economic Development Department continues to market the site to potential businesses as well.
The first step to a redevelopment of the entire site for several new businesses is to remove the eyesore of a building, and we are excited to see this long-awaited demolition finally taking place and new life being brought to this corner of the Flower Valley Shopping Center.