A long-vacant storefront in Benton Harbor has a new tenant.
Ross Dress For Less, a California-based discount clothing and home goods store, is set to open its first Michigan location. The store will be located between Dollar Tree and Kohls in Fairplain Plaza in Benton Township.
Benton Township Building Official Chris Fuchs confirmed Thursday the store was issued a building permit for the storefront, which sits where Dunham’s Sports resided until moving to its current location in 2013.
“It’s always lovely to see stores come in and something get built up,” Fuchs said.
Ross Stores was founded in 1982, and focuses on bringing our customers a constant stream of high-quality department and specialty store brands at “extraordinary savings,” according to its website.
To see examples of what customers have found at the store, click here.
Screenshot of Ross website.
The company works directly with manufacturers to negotiate the deals, and provides savings to customers due to its “no frills” philosophy – no window displays, mannequins, fancy fixtures or decorations in the store.
Joe D, a project supervisor working for Ross Corporation at the site, said crews began renovating the space about three weeks ago. New electrical systems are already in place, with additional work to include installing new HVAC, plumbing, flooring security and fire protection.
“There’s going to be a new storefront in here,” said Joe, who declined to provide his last name. “We’re going to spruce up the outside of the building … it’s going to look brand new.”
Joe said there was no significant damage inside of the store when they arrived, but it was basically an empty shell.
“The landlord did a decent job of cleaning out,” he said. “The floors were not in great condition, so we’re going to have to grind and float the floors.”
Joe said Ross is expecting to have the store ready to open by late May. The closest Ross stores are currently in Mishawaka, Elkhart and South Bend. For more on Ross, visit rossstores.com.
By Ryan Yuenger
ryany@wsjm.com
