A Mesa eyesore is coming back to life. The vacant retail center on the northeast corner of University Drive and Greenfield Road once housed a Fry’s grocery, but the 100,000-square-foot site has been vacant and quiet for years. Come Nov. 4, the corner will be home to a new 38,000-square-foot Goodwill thrift store.
Valley real estate magnate Michael Pollack says he received more than 100 emails and letters from people in the neighborhood before he bought the center for about $2 million and began renovating it.
The shopping center also now includes a cafe and martial arts studio.
In a statement, Pollack, a longtime supporter of Goodwill and its job training programs, said the corner’s possibilities are an example of the power of infill projects.
“I just knew I could make it better and make a difference,” he said. “So we walked around the neighborhood, met some of the neighbors and I asked them ‘How would you like it if I renovated the center?’ ”
The new Goodwill store, 4412 E. University, will be dedicated at a ribbon-cutting ceremony 9 a.m. Nov. 4 with a marching band and door prizes.
mvccd1000 posted at 10:37 pm on Tue, Oct 25, 2011.
While I'm glad to see some redevelopment taking place in the vacant Main Street corridor, this is all Mesa has to look forward to until/unless the light rail is extended out Main. I'd love to see it go all the way to the 202 near Ellsworth Road.
Suelee posted at 8:56 am on Thu, Oct 27, 2011.
Conversely, the closing of the Goodwill on Southern Ave at Fiesta Mall is just one more nail in the coffin of the Fiesta District. No, opening the store on Country Club in the old Gold's Gym location does NOT help the Fiesta District rebirth.