Heading into Thanksgiving, the downtown Saline business community has a low vacancy rate to be thankful for. As of press time, downtown has only two vacancies – 109 W Michigan Ave. and the second floor of 101 S Ann Arbor St., home to the Murphy's Crossing property management firm – according to Art Trapp, downtown director for the Saline Business Development Association.
New businesses opening over the last six months include the Downtown Diner at 131 E Michigan Ave., Saline Pharmacy at 75 E Bennett St., and Oxygen Plus, a medical equipment supply company that moved from another Saline location into 98 N Ann Arbor St., a location which the owner "found very beneficial," says Trapp.
Reincarnations Resale, a vintage furniture and clothing consignment shop, just opened a couple of weeks ago at 109 E Michigan Ave.
Interested parties are looking at the 109 W Michigan Ave. space, former home of the Calico Cat gift shop, Trapp says.
"Most folks are doing okay," he says, adding, "We haven't had a great exodus; it seems when one is vacant we find somebody to fill it."
The city is also applying to be a Michigan Main Street Select Level community.
Michigan Main Street is a program supporting the economic vibrancy of downtowns. The application should be submitted in 2012, Trapp says.
Source: Art Trapp, downtown director, Saline Business Development Association
Writer: Tanya Muzumdar
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