Now that the latest tenant has left the building, residents are wondering what business will be the next to occupy the old Harding's Market at 114 S Farmer St. in Otsego. What was most recently a wholesale discount store is now over 20,000 sq. ft. of empty retail space. What's next?

As an avid thrifter, I was disappointed when I heard discount retailer Smart and Simple was going out of business after the new year. They had quite an eclectic selection of what appeared to be Amazon returns, liquidated overstock, and discount groceries. I made the drive over from Allegan several times to stock up on their jalapeno ketchup and cheap toilet paper!

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Now that Smart and Simple has closed and has no concrete plans to continue occupying the space, residents are discussing which business they'd like to see take over that space next. Although the old Harding's closed in 2018 after nearly 70 years in business, they never truly left the area. Harding's simply moved further down M-89 to set up shop in the former Big Top grocer in Plainwell. However, many to would like to see Harding's return to the original Otsego location.

Here's what others had to say:

Chris Wolfe,

"It'd be a nice bowling alley"

Erica Rausch said,

"Lord, don’t let DG know it’s for sale. They’d have another one built there in a heartbeat!"

Shawn Webb,

"It would be cool if they would do wholesale pallet liquidations"

Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if any one of the Big Three "Dollar" retailers moved into that space. Other popular answers included various big box grocers like Trader Joe's, Family Fare, Sam's Club, Kroger, or Ollie's. Personally, I'd like to see something fun like a roller rink or a fun-center with laser tag! What new business would you like to see there?

Allegan's Burrito Boss is Closed

Without warning, the restaurant at 1256 Lincoln Rd in Allegan closed its doors.

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