Rural king store will soon replace Kmart building
COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) For several years, the old K-Mart building in Columbus has been sitting vacant, but that empty property will soon be the perfect spot for a shopping spree.
“We found out last night that the council signed off on a two million tax incentive over ten years, to help bring rural king, said Keith Gaskin, Columbus Mayor. “Which is referred to as an outdoor superstore to Columbus in the old K-Mart building”
Rural King sells firearms, clothing, lawn supplies, and much more. Columbus Mayor Keith Gaskin said new revenue like this will have a great economic impact on the friendly city.
“We feel like it will bring shoppers in outside of the Golden Triangle that will be spending and visiting Columbus, said Gaskin. “So, we are very excited about it, and we hope that this is one of several retailers that will be coming to the Columbus area”
The store will bring in a million dollar payroll and create about 60 jobs. It can also be an opportunity for a person that is retired, to get back into the workforce.
“Columbus still is leading in sales tax, of all the cities in the Golden Triangle, said Gaskin. “I think this is one more way to make sure we maintain the sales tax that we receive. The sales tax is the largest portion of our budget, and that building has been sitting empty for several years now, and so there is no sales tax coming in from that building, and we are pleased that that is about to change”
There are 133 rural king locations across 13 states, but this will be the first one in Mississippi. Although renovations have yet to begin, Columbus native Janice Thompson believes the new store will be a great addition to Columbus.
“I think that would be fabulous, that will create more places to shop, and you cannot ask for more than that, said Thompson. “Especially for when Christmas and other holidays are coming, it will be an awesome thing for those things.”
“It would also take care of an empty building that used to be K-Mart,” said Thompson.
The building is expected to be completed by late 2026, or early 2027.
