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The Kmart closed in 2012 and has been vacant since. Indianapolis-based DeMao Retail, a commercial real estate firm, is now looking to redevelop the site into a grocery store. "We're working through the process of finalizing everything that's needed in order to redevelop the property," Partner Del DeMao said.
"We are working with Jewel-Osco to redevelop the property." St. John is considering extending an access road from W.
96th Avenue along the western edge of the Chase Bank to improve access to the parking lot. The town also is weighing creating a new tax-increment financing district allocation area for the site. "The redevelopment would involve multiple items," DeMao said.
Jewel-Osco would occupy the entire 70,000-square-foot former Kmart building. The building would be almost completely renovated except for the shell. Everything would be replaced except for some structural components like steel bars and joists.
"It would be a complete gut of the old building," DeMao said. "It would be a complete remodel." Listen now and subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | RSS Feed | SoundStack | All Of Our Podcasts Jewel-Osco is the leading grocer in Chicagoland.
It now has four locations in Northwest Indiana, including Munster, Dyer, Crown Point and Chesterton. It opened its newest Northwest Indiana location in Chesterton more than two decades ago. "We're very excited," DeMao said.
"Our goal is to bring a great tenant to the town of St. John." The long-abandoned Kmart was home to a mass shooting in 1985 when the unemployed pressman James Koslow killed three people and wounded several others during a shooting spree there.
The discount department store stayed open until 2012 when its parent company Sears elected to close that location in one of several waves of closures over the years as the former home of the Blue Light Special was toppled from its perch of being one of the largest retailers in the United States in the face of competition from lower-cost, more modern rivals like Walmart and Target. Many people in St. John have since complained about the property being blighted and remaining undeveloped.
St. John is one of the fastest-growing communities in Indiana and one of the more affluent in Northwest Indiana. New subdivisions have sprung up left and right as Illinois transplants have poured in, leading some to question when the retail would finally catch up to all the residential growth.
A new Jewel-Osco would compete with other grocers nearby on Wicker Avenue like Strack & Van Til, Target and Aldi. The goal is to have the new Jewel-Osco supermarket open by the end of 2026, DeMao said. DeMao has been marketing the long-vacant Kmart to prospective tenants for the past year.
The company specializes in tenant-focused development. It works with national retailers and restaurants on locations throughout the Midwest. It also has developed BMV branches in Indiana.
"We're excited for the town. It's going to be an incredible project," DeMao said. "Our team is incredibly excited for the opportunity.
This is really going to be a great deal.".
