{"id":35304,"date":"2022-05-17T13:26:50","date_gmt":"2022-05-17T17:26:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.glensfalls.com\/glensfallsbusinessjournal\/?p=35304"},"modified":"2022-05-17T13:26:50","modified_gmt":"2022-05-17T17:26:50","slug":"u-haul-brings-new-life-to-former-kmart-store-property-on-dix-ave-in-queensbury","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.glensfalls.com\/glensfallsbusinessjournal\/2022\/05\/u-haul-brings-new-life-to-former-kmart-store-property-on-dix-ave-in-queensbury\/","title":{"rendered":"U-Haul Brings New Life To Former Kmart Store Property On Dix Ave. In Queensbury"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"
From left, U-Haul employees Brittany Dooley, Levi Parmerter, Glendon Binette, Martin Burnell, Guilliano Amelo Sr. and Heather Beysey pose at the company\u2019s new facility in Queensbury.
Paul Post<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By Paul Post<\/p>\n

America is a nation on the move, as nearly 20 people million are expected to relocate this summer. U-Haul\u2019s purchase of former Kmart stores, including one at 308 Dix Ave. in Queensbury, helps ease such transitions by giving customers convenient services from rental vehicles to trailer hitches, storage containers and supplies designed to protect fragile items.<\/p>\n

The repurposed former retail store in Queensbury gives new life to the property.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve seen several (former Kmart stores) that have sat too long,\u201d said Levi Parmerter, U-Haul area district vice president. \u201cYou can\u2019t use them and bad things start to happen. People start to break in and steal the copper and HVAC units. It becomes a nuisance you don\u2019t want.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo this is a good use of the building for sure,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are not a lot of retailers that can come in and fill a 150,000-square-foot building any more. Brick and mortar retail isn\u2019t what it used to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

U-Haul bought the 25-acre Queensbury site for $7.1 million and purchased 12 other Kmarts across the U.S. in 2019 for $62 million.<\/p>\n

<\/span><\/span>U-Haul slowly modified the local site, including installation of 470 interior climate-controlled storage units, and 214 outside in the large parking lot. It spent $2 million revamping the local property.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The Queensbury Kmart first opened in 1994 and closed in March 2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe building itself was fairly simple to convert,\u201d Parmerter said. \u201cThe problem was getting our product and use to fit what the town had it zoned for and wanted. That was a bit of a challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n

For example, former 40-foot-high light poles in the parking lot have been lowered to 20 feet, and new landscape features such as trees and bushes were planted around the perimeter.<\/p>\n

Parmerter said company president, chairman and chief executive officer Joe Shoen personally visited the Queensbury site before approving its purchase.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

U-Haul will continue to operate a second, existing Queensbury site near Northway Exit 18, where most of its business is truck and trailer rentals, along with some storage units.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe outgrew that location a long time ago,\u201d Parmerter said. \u201cWe were looking to expand our climate-controlled market and have another site for trailer hitch and truck rentals. Plus we have warehouse space for mobile storage units here (Dix Avenue), so this site gives us a whole line of products.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Queensbury facility has a retail showroom, plus an area for connecting trailer hitches and bike racks to customer cars and trucks. The property allows people to pull into a covered bay to load and unload interior storage unit items.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019ll be out of the elements with overhead doors down behind them,\u201d Parmerter said. \u201cIt gives the customer a real good sense of security. If they\u2019ve already filled their garage, their attic, this will be an extension of their home. That\u2019s exactly what this represents.\u201d<\/p>\n

At present, 40 percent of the facility is filled with climate-controlled storage units and large wooden, portable U-Boxes that can be filled with belongings and then shipped to a person\u2019s destination when they\u2019re finally ready to move.<\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of times people move to a new job, college or fly across country and stuff comes right before or after them,\u201d Parmerter said. \u201cWe drop the container at a customer\u2019s house. They can load it at their leisure. Then we\u2019ll pick it back up and store it here until they move, and need to ship it one-way. U-Boxes fit in the back of a tractor-trailer. People can rent however many they need. You put things in once and take them out once, when boxes are delivered.\u201d<\/p>\n

A five-person team led by general manager Glendon Binette is responsible for marketing and keeping customers satisfied.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of our customers are repeat so we strive to provide good service so they continue to use us. That\u2019s what has to happen here,\u201d Parmerter said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The biggest customer base is people picking up and dropping off things after buying a new home within the greater Glens Falls area, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlus, a lot of people from New York City are moving into the area, buying second homes in Lake George or the Adirondacks,\u201d he said. \u201cThere are also a lot of one-way rentals such as kids going to college within New York state. More people are moving every darn day.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Paul Post America is a nation on the move, as nearly 20 people million are expected to relocate this summer. U-Haul\u2019s purchase of former Kmart stores, including one at 308 Dix Ave. in Queensbury, helps ease such transitions by giving customers convenient services from rental vehicles to trailer hitches, storage containers and supplies designed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":89,"featured_media":35305,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\r\nU-Haul Brings New Life To Former Kmart Store Property On Dix Ave. In Queensbury - Glens Falls Business Journal<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.glensfalls.com\/glensfallsbusinessjournal\/2022\/05\/u-haul-brings-new-life-to-former-kmart-store-property-on-dix-ave-in-queensbury\/\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"U-Haul Brings New Life To Former Kmart Store Property On Dix Ave. In Queensbury - Glens Falls Business Journal\" \/>\r\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Paul Post America is a nation on the move, as nearly 20 people million are expected to relocate this summer. 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