Ace Hardware At Otis Orchards Opens Monday

Sat., Aug. 12, 1995

By Ward Sanderson wards@spokesman.com

An Ace Hardware store, the anchor tenant of a new strip mall project in Otis Orchards, opens Monday.

Harvard Plaza will also be the home of Dinky Dudds, a children’s clothing store, and a Papa Murphy’s Pizza franchise.

The 20,000-square-foot-mall is located at the northeast corner of Harvard Road and Wellesley Avenue.

Tomlinson Commercial Real Estate Services of Post Falls is handling the leasing.

Monte Risvold, a Tomlinson marketing consultant, said the project is the right move at the right time.

“There’s nothing; you have Norma’s (Burger Barn) and that’s about it,” Risvold said. But population-wise, “it’s growing leaps and bounds out there.”

Risvold said the Ace store takes up 10,000-square-feet of space and will stock 17,000 separate items.

He said before Ace Hardware allows a franchisee to open a new store, it does an in-depth demographic study.

The company concluded the Otis Orchards site could expect about 400 transactions each day during the week and 600 per day on weekends.

He said the study concluded the store would serve an area population of 12,500 people.

“It did very well on the charts,” Risvold said.

He said another big plus is traffic flow. About 8,000 vehicles travel the Harvard and Wellesley intersection each day.

The hardware store is owned by Robert Guidon and James Jopson. They also own an Ace store in Post Falls.

The other two confirmed Harvard Plaza tenants are also expected to open their doors soon, Risvold said. He said Dinky Dudds is scheduled to open Aug. 21.

The Papa Murphy’s mall site should also open this month or in early September, said owner Gary Wolfe.

Wolfe also plans to open a Papa Murphy’s at 13514 E. Sprague.

That store should open no later than mid-August. Wolfe also owns three other Papa Murphy’s stores in Idaho.

Risvold said other potential tenants have inquired about Harvard Plaza, but no other contracts have been signed. The strip mall has four more available spaces.

, DataTimes

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