DETROIT (AP) – Several Kmart stores in Michigan are preparing to close next month, following dozens of others that have shuttered in the state since the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection nearly 15 years ago.
The Detroit News reports nearly two-thirds of the 2,165 Kmart stores that were operating in the U.S. have closed since 2000. More than 130 nationwide closures have been announced this year.
Seven stores in the state are slated to close Dec. 11, including locations in Jackson and Fenton.
Some defunct Kmarts in Bloomfield Hills, Woodhaven and other Metro Detroit cities have been resurrected as new enterprises, but vacant Kmart buildings are still scattered throughout the region.
The nature of the aging buildings makes them difficult to fill with other retail as they’re often massive structures tailored to house Kmarts.
