Someone Bought the Empty Rite Aid Building on Forest Ave in Portland
A former Rite Aid that has been vacant for four years at the corner of Forest and Ocean Avenues in Portland is in the process of being redeveloped.
Rite Aid left Maine after Walgreens bought over 2000 of their stores in 2017. Several Rite Aid locations in Maine closed long before that including Lisbon Street in Lewiston and Brighton Avenue in Portland. When Walgreens bought Rite Aid, the Forest and Ocean locations was not converted to a Walgreens since there was already a Walgreens a mile away near Woodford's corner.
According to The Portland Press Herald, the former Forest Avenue Rite Aid's 13,000 square feet of space will be divided up to hold four businesses. An artist's rendition of the new design shows that not much will change on the exterior with the exception of a lot more windows.
There's been no announcement of any of the possible four tenants for the new space yet, but the real estate agency says it's suitable for just about anything including a gym, bank, takeout restaurant, or even a medical facility.
Work has begun on remodeling the old pharmacy. During my drive into work at 4 a.m this week I glanced over at the building and could see the empty space inside with all the lights on and new windows installed.
We'll have to keep our eyes on the corner of Forest and Ocean Avenues and see what develops.