ALTON - The Dollar General, currently located at 2982 Homer Adams Parkway, will move across the highway to the former location of the Alton Burger King, located near the closing K-Mart and the Tractor Supply Store.
Representatives from Dollar General said construction on the new location began on Dec. 30, and it is expected to be completed for a soft opening by mid to late April, with a grand opening to follow a Saturday morning in May. Alton Building and Zoning Director Caffey said he was optimistic for an established business to come to that location, after several restaurants, including the former Burger King, failed.
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"It's been a variety of restaurants since Burger King closed, and none have been long-lasting," Caffey said. "It's good for us to know a well-established entity will be taking it over."
Dollar General Senior Director for Communications Dan MacDonald said the corporation chooses new locations very carefully.
"When choosing store locations, meeting customers’ needs is Dollar General’s top priority," he said in an email. "The company looks for places where we can offer customers an easy and convenient shopping choice. We know convenience is a major factor in our customers' shopping decisions as we generally serve customers within a three to five mile radius, or 10 minute drive. We also take demographic trends, competitive factors, traffic patterns and community concerns into consideration."
MacDonald said the new location may employ between six and 10 employees, and said anyone interested in applying could browse available positions at www.dollargeneral.com/careers.
Caffey said the plan to construct a new Dollar General at that location have been in the works for "quite some time," saying the same entity who constructed the recent Dollar General on Broadway near the police station will build this one. Caffey said the new Dollar General being constructed will resemble the one on Broadway when it is completed.
The former building, which once housed the Burger King, has been demolished to make room for the new Dollar General currently under construction.
