By Katy Yeiser, Daily Journal of Johnson County staff writer
Four neighboring businesses along busy State Road 135 in Greenwood have closed, but a new store should open in one spot this spring.
What will become of the former Speedway gas station, Rally's restaurant and Jiffy Lube car repair shop is unknown, but the closings are unrelated and just a coincidence, said Todd Kuebel, who owns the property where Jiffy Lube and Rally's used to be.
The Boston Market, Rally's, Jiffy Lube and Speedway along State Road 135 south of the Meijer store closed starting in the fall and through the end of 2008, setting up a line of businesses with empty parking lots and boarded-up windows.
Three of the businesses did not renew their leases, and construction workers started tearing down parts of the gas station last week.
The Speedway gas station was sold in August because of a poor economy, spokeswoman Linda Casey said. Low profits from the sale of drinks, candy and other goods in the store, coupled with high gas prices in the summer, made the station unprofitable, she said.
A demolition company is tearing down the canopies over the gas pumps and removing the tanks, but plans for the site are unclear, said Greenwood building commissioner Lowell Weber.
Boston Market did not renew its lease after about 15 years of business and was sold to AutoZone in October, property owner Judy Hoeping said. The fast-food restaurant will be torn down, and an AutoZone will open in June, she said.
The specific reasons for the store closing were not known but could be due to various reasons, such as poor store performance or a company decision not to renew the lease and focus on stores elsewhere, Boston Market spokeswoman Angie Dully said.
The former Jiffy Lube and Rally's stores are on property owned by Todd and Kelly Kuebel of Enterprise Investments, and both companies did not renew their leases at the end of the year, Todd Kuebel said. The companies had been located there more than a dozen years, he said.
The couple haven't put the properties back on the market but will look for new tenants soon, Todd Kuebel said. He doesn't see the economy as a barrier to finding new business for the property because of the bustling business area on State Road 135.
"Even though it's a tough market out there, we found there are still opportunities and people still interested in getting on that corridor," he said. "It's just kind of goofy timing (that all four businesses are closed)."
All of the closed businesses are just north of Cedar Grove Veterinary Hospital, which has been in business for 30 years.