Target confirms plans for a second Bradenton store at a very prominent intersection
When word got out last November that Kmart was closing its store at 7350 Manatee Ave. W., the last Kmart in Manatee County, rumors began to swirl almost immediately that Target might be interested in that location for one of its stores.
The rumors turned out to be true.
“I can confirm Target has plans to open a store in Bradenton. Located at 75th Street and Manatee Avenue, the store will be approximately 49,000 square feet. As we get closer to opening the store, we’ll have more specific details to share – including how the shopping experience will be tailored to serve local guests and the grand opening date,” a spokeswoman for Target said in an email on Tuesday.
The proposed Target would be the second in Manatee County. The existing store is located at 6150 14th St. W., in Bayshore Gardens.
There is also a Super Target at 101 N. Cattlemen Road in the University Town Center shopping district. Sarasota has several other Targets, including at 5350 Fruitville Road and at 8401 S. Tamiami Trail.
In February, workers took down the iconic K from the facade of the former Kmart building on Manatee Avenue, leaving an empty building and lots of questions about what might be coming next.
At the same time, just on the south side of Manatee Avenue and 75th Street West stood an empty parking lot where a Lucky’s market had been planned, on the site where a former Albertson’s supermarket was demolished.
Lucky’s pulled out of plans to build at the intersection after it lost Krogers as an investor. Ultimately, Lucky’s filed for bankruptcy and closed many of its stores. A WaWa store, which won city approval in 2018, was also planned for the intersection but has yet to be built.
The COVID-19 pandemic has made a difficult time for large box retailers even more difficult with national brands Tuesday Morning, J.C. Penney, Neiman Marcus, J.Crew and Stage Stores, and Steinmart all filing for bankruptcy this year.
The decision by Target to takeover the former Manatee Avenue Kmart space means that at least one down-on-its luck Bradenton retail location will be spared what is frequently happening in many other big box spaces.
“What is happening with the big boxes is that they are being repurposed with smaller tenants. Some are becoming fitness facilities, others are becoming entertainment venues, and some are becoming mixed use. Some are being turned into storage facilities,” Janet Robinson, commercial director for Coldwell Banker Commercial NRT, told the Herald earlier this year.