(La Porte, IN) - The countdown is on for what’s expected to trigger a rebirth on the west side

of La Porte.  The grand opening for Rural King is scheduled March 27.  The retail giant with more than 100 stores, primarily in the midwest and southeast, is going into the old Kmart section of the Maple Lane Mall. 

 

Bert Cook, Executive Director of the La Porte Economic Advancement Partnership, said the improvements Rural King has already made to the site have made a huge difference.  "They've done great work on the shopping center, on the parking lot and just really making significant improvements to the Maple Lane Mall.  I think it's going to be a great day.  We're excited about it and I talked to a lot of people who are excited about it. It'll be great to get to that grand opening and to see them serving our community long into the future," he said.

 

Cook also said La Porte being both a city and surrounded by a lot of farmland is situated perfectly for Rural King to succeed.  "You've got the urban and the rural kind of mixed together and I think that makes for a very attractive market for Rural King," he said.

 

Cook said the location is also like a Gateway for places like Union Mills, Wanatah and LaCrosse south of La Porte where farms dominate the landscape.  The market should also extended out to the west, an area also heavy into farming without a Rural King nearby, he said.  Cook also said that working to La Porte's advantage is the closest Rural King is currently in Niles, Michigan.

 

The traffic Rural King is expected to bring should help lure stores to occupy the remaining space at the once thriving mall but now mostly dormant mall.