By Kalin Krohe, Panhandle Post
The new Dollar Tree/Family Dollar store opened up recently at the Alliance Plaza.
Box Butte Development Corporation (BBDC) stated that this new business will help grow Alliance.
"It can be viewed as an anchor," said Chelsie Herian, BBDC Executive Director. "Therefore it helps recruit other businesses to the plaza due to increased foot traffic."
There is also an economic benefit with increased sales tax revenues with Dollar Tree/Family Dollar moving into town.
Panhandle Post asked Herian about future growth with the Alliance Plaza.
"Dan Dickenson with Syndicate Block Companies has been trying to make some facade improvements to the plaza to make it more appealing to new businesses," Herian added.
There has been a lot of business growth on the west end of Alliance recently. Highway 385 is a big factor in that.
"Location is everything to a business," said Herian. "Since the 4-lane expansion...Highway 385 is where businesses want to be. Such as existing business Pizza Hut or new like O'Reilly's Auto Parts. The traffic is on 385 and businesses want to be seen."
Herian stated there's been some challenges trying to get businesses to move into Alliance as the coronavirus pandemic continues.
"The pandemic has slowed some things down," said Herian. "But there are still people wanting to open their own business. We will continue to assist however we can. When it comes to soliciting new businesses, a lot of that comes from listening to the community and then checking in on their demographic model. Do we meet the business population requirements, connectivity to interstate, income, and workforce availability. Plus a lot of stores today are franchised versus company owned...so then we run into issues finding a franchisee to make it happen."
Herian went on to say that she wants businesses to feel appreciated in the community.
"I would also like to add that making sure our businesses that are here feel appreciated is so important," Herian added. "If we can prove to a business that they matter, new businesses will want to come be part of that community too. Any business is good business, but happy business owners mean the most."