A reader checked in a couple of weeks ago, wondering about some construction activity at the southeast corner of 15th & Dickinson. We did a little investigating, and here’s what we found:

In the past

Couple weeks ago

According to an old listing from 2004, the first floor previously contained a store and a check cashing place. The owners of the property lived in a single, 5-bedroom unit upstairs. From a couple of people we’ve spoken with, the commercial space hasn’t been active for awhile now. About a year ago, a gentleman named Victor Ly purchased the building for $170K, and soon after proposed a grocery store that also served food.

That application, however, was withdrawn in August, with a new application in October for a grocery without any of the food service. The first application required a variance, but the second was by right. Is it possible that the change was due to some opposition in the neighborhood, or did the owners simply change their concept midstream?

Finished work on the facade, it seems. Looks better than it used to, by a little bit.

While it’s not the most exciting use that you’ll ever see, it’s good news to see this corner will soon be reactivated. And if plans for the construction of two homes on the vacant lots next door ever come to fruition, the store should have some customers very close by, or maybe some neighbors to make sure that the corner store doesn’t turn into a nuisance business, as some corner stores do. Meanwhile, the old listing we referenced above suggests that the space would make an easy restaurant conversion. Maybe someday…