At long last

Former Kmart building to be razed

Plymouth Township Supervisor Kurt Heise received a pleasant start to the holiday season last week when demolition permits were issued for the former Kmart site on Ann Arbor Road near Haggerty in the township.
Demolition at the longtime eyesore should begin, Heise said, in early December and the construction of a new $93 million Henry Ford Hospital outpatient and health care facility begin. The new facility is expected to be complete in 2021, Heise noted.

"In keeping with our ongoing strategy, this development will bring a comprehensive level of services to our growing base of patients in western Wayne County," Bob Riney, Henry Ford's president of Healthcare Operations and chief operating officer, said in a press release when the plans were made public earlier this year.  The center will provide several services, including cancer screening, cardiology, gastroenterology, integrative medicine like acupuncture and chiropractic care, lab services, orthopedics, a pharmacy, physical therapy, radiology, pharmacy and walk-in clinic.
The building has been vacant since the Kmart location was closed in 2017 as part of a massive closing of locations across the country. The two Henry Ford Health centers in the area, one at 14300 N. Beck Road in Plymouth and another at 6100 Haggerty in Canton Township, will remain open, according to hospital officials.
The new health center will employ about 120 people, according to official reports, some transferring from other sites to the new Plymouth Township center and some new hires.
Heise said earlier this year that he believes the new construction could  spur more development along the Ann Arbor Road corridor.
The land is under a planned unit development crafted in 2015, Heise said, which doesn't require the project go through the normal channels such as a site plan review by the township planning commission.