Former Michigan Rite Aid locations find new tenants amid retail transformation; Plum Market, UM Health-Sparrow, Memorial Healthcare among businesses repurposing vacant pharmacy spaces

April 1, 2025 (Detroit News, The (MI)) –

Bloomfield Township — After learning the Rite Aid store next door was closing, the owners of Plum Market in Bloomfield Township moved quickly to acquire the extra space.

“We’ve been here 18 years, and we’ve wanted to expand it for 18 years. So we were happy when the opportunity came,” said Matt Jonna , CEO of Plum Market, standing in the 10,000-square-foot space being renovated for the expansion.

Nearly six months after Rite Aid 's exit from Michigan amid financial troubles weighing on many of the nation's top pharmacy chains, some of the former pharmacy sites are being repurposed for various new uses and new concepts.

In addition to Plum Market’s expansion, UM Health-Sparrow is opening a health care facility at a former Rite Aid in Lansing , and Memorial Healthcare opened a patient care facility and pharmacy late last year in a closed Rite Aid in Owosso . Kroger of Michigan recently purchased a Rite Aid building in Midland , where officials say the chain has wanted to expand.

At a shuttered Rite Aid in St. Clair Shores , Express Wash Concepts is turning the building into a single-tunnel car wash. Additionally, a former Rite Aid building will be divided into four tenant spaces in Wyandotte , a move toward mixed use.

There are still challenges ahead, however, as many former Rite Aid and CVS locations remain empty across the state. And there are challenges with larger retail spaces, such as the 41 Joann stores in Michigan that will be vacant when the fabric retailer shuts its doors this spring.

“The tenant base for these types of buildings varies significantly based on location and other factors,” said Ben Hubert , vice president for Colliers Detroit.

Closures being opportunities

Rite Aid filed for bankruptcy in the fall of 2023 before a wave of store closures that culminated when it announced late last summer that it would close all of its Michigan stores. All told, the chain shuttered more than 180 locations in the state.

In addition to pharmacy services, Rite Aid locations were once key for last-mile retail, offering essential items that customers needed immediately, such as toilet paper, said Kees Janeway , a retail estate expert and managing partner at Iconic Real Estate in Detroit .

But the rise of online shopping has left some brick-and-mortar retailers struggling to compete, he said: “They’ve got the burden of real estate expenses that didn't have to compete with that online nature when they were first established.”

Vic Veda, vice president of communications for the Michigan Retailers Association , said the sector is evolving to meet customer needs. While she expressed disappointment over the closure of Rite Aid stores, she said it opens opportunities for other kinds of uses, from specialty shops to business incubators.

“We encourage Michigan’s entrepreneurs to explore these available spaces and consider the possibilities they offer,” she said. "Online shopping is certainly not going anywhere. We see e-commerce continuing to have a stronghold in every report that comes out. So we aren't trying to fight against e-commerce, necessarily, but providing opportunities for consumers to have unique shopping experiences in store."

The buildings that are more likely to be redeveloped are those with visibility at key corners, easy access, good traffic flow and the right amount of space, said Hubert of Colliers Detroit: “Lighted hard-corner locations, shopping center outlots and other high-traffic intersections are more frequently repurposed.”

Hubert said Colliers represents Advance Auto Parts , which has submitted offers to lease several former pharmacy locations. Janeway said he is working with an autism treatment center interested in repurposing similar spaces.

Janeway replacement tenants may be harder to find in rural locations. Potential options include mom-and-pop businesses, small grocery stores or recreational facilities like pickleball courts and golf simulators.

He said larger retail spaces, such as former Joann stores, have more flexibility in attracting new tenants. Some retailers, including Five Below , Big Lots and Floor & Decor , are still expanding and may take on 20,000-square-foot retail spaces. Other potential tenants include Planet Fitness , hardware stores, trampoline parks, charter schools and churches.

A chance to expand

At Plum Market at Maple and Lahser roads , a $4 million project is underway that will increase the store from 20,000 square feet to 30,000 square feet and refresh the current space. Jonna said they moved quickly as the Rite Aid closed in mid-September; construction started Oct. 1 .

The expansion is being done in two phases, the first to be completed in May and the second in August. It will provide more space for the produce, floral, meat and seafood departments.

“Bigger wine, beer, liquor,” Jonna said. “Bigger everything. This wall is going to come down, and that's where we're at.”

Sarah Zimmerman of Bloomfield Township , a longtime shopper at Plum Market, said she’s looking forward to the larger store.

“I’m just excited for a more expanded selection,” she said, standing by a bin with an assortment of yams. Zimmerman said she was a Rite Aid pharmacy customer, and while she’ll miss the convenience of it, she wasn’t particularly sad to see the store close.

“I wasn't terribly attached to it,” she said. “It's not a huge loss for me, sadly. I hate to see businesses closing and leaving Michigan.”

The store will also return a key service to the space — a drugstore. Village Pharmacy , a local independent, is going to operate a separate, smaller pharmacy within the store, said Marc Jonna , co-founder and president of Plum Market.

“People really wanted a pharmacy there again,” he said. “So we have Village Pharmacy partnering with us to have a Village Pharmacy in the store with our natural apothecary section and supplements and body care. So I think it's going to be really unique where you’ve got the pharmacy meets the natural kind of healing, together.”

Marc Jonna said the checkout area in the front of the store is tight, something the expansion will address, along with adding shelf space.

“It's still going to be Plum Market like you see, but ... some of the categories that we felt like were smaller because (of) the limited space are going to get a little bit more breadth of selection, a little bit more ease of shopping,” he said.

A healthy interest

Health care appears to be a sector drawn to former pharmacy locations. For example, Memorial Healthcare took over the former Rite Aid building in Owosso in June 2024 after the chain closed the location in September 2023 .

In December, the Owosso -based health care system opened Memorial Healthcare Urgent Care and Memorial Healthcare Outpatient Services, which includes laboratory and X-ray services. Memorial Community Pharmacy opened there the same month.

Brian Long , president and CEO of Memorial Health System , said centralizing urgent care at the Owosso site allowed them to add capacity while freeing up space in other buildings for additional services.

"It's been so far a resounding success," he said. "It's allowed us to expand, not only our retail and our walk-in pharmacy operations, the urgent care. But we also provide drive-thru, so it's convenient there. If you don't have to get out and go in and you just need to fill a script, we can do that."

He said the building’s location at M-21 and Gould Street , along with its drive-thru, made it an ideal spot to combine the facilities.

“It’s really at a major cross-section of our community, great visibility, great parking, great public awareness, convenience,” he said.

In Lansing , UM Health expects to open a pharmacy in July and urgent care services in August inside a former Rite Aid store at the corner of E. Michigan Avenue and Pennsylvania , across from UM Health-Sparrow Lansing. Construction is underway.

Connie O'Malley, regional chief operating officer for UM Health , said the health system was contacted by both Rite Aid and the property owner to see if they were interested in the building.

The Rite Aid location served the community significantly, O’Malley said, with 94,000 prescriptions at that store. To replace it, the health system developed a "one-stop shop" that will offer occupational health services in addition to the pharmacy and urgent care center, she said.

The 11,000-square-foot building was an ideal size, she said: “We're just really excited, because we think it'll be really helpful to our surrounding Michigan communities. As you know, with all of the viruses, flu, COVID, RSV and many other things that are happening now, urgent cares really play a vital role in making sure patients are getting care, the appropriate care that they need.”

Kroger in November bought an adjacent former Rite Aid building on Ashland Street in Midland for $3.5 million , according to city records. Although no paperwork or permits have been filed with the city regarding a project, Ryan Chapman , the city's building official, said he is aware Kroger has wanted to expand.

In Wyandotte , a former Rite Aid building at 1998 Biddle Ave. , across from Henry Ford Wyandotte Hospital , is being transformed into four medical or retail suites totaling 10,952 square feet.

Mike Zieldorff , listing agent with Skylark Commercial Realty , said the renovation is still in the conceptual phase, with plans including a potential drive-thru space likely to be occupied by a Biggby Coffee. While no agreements have been signed yet, the coffee chain is showing strong interest, he said.

Zieldorff said property owners are rethinking the use of large retail spaces, with many opting to divide them into smaller units to make them more marketable.

“(Landlords are) trying to get creative and think outside the box and figure out not only how they can improve the value of their spaces, but what can they do to generate the income that they were used to generating with the Rite Aid there," he said.

In St. Clair Shores , Express Wash Concepts has begun construction at the former Rite Aid at Harper and 10 Mile. Denise Pike , the city's community services director, expects the development to be complete this year.

"It's actually kind of an innovative adaptive use project to turn a pharmacy, a Rite Aid ," she said, "into a car wash."

cwilliams@detroitnews.com

@CWilliams_DN

This article originally appeared on The Detroit News : Closed Michigan Rite Aids get new life with redevelopment