Several more Kmart stores to close in Michigan next month

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.

Nearly two-thirds of the 2,165 Kmart stores that were operating in the U.S. have closed since 2000, The Detroit News (http://detne.ws/2fJtv8l ) reported. 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.

An example of this is an old Kmart in Troy that has not had many changes since it was vacated in 2006, shortly after Kmart merged with Sears.

Owner of the building Nate Forbes, managing partner of The Forbes Company, said the company will be "reviewing development plans for the site of the former Kmart headquarters that will complement the vibrancy and growth on the Big Beaver corridor."

Forbes said earlier this month that plans for the building would be presented in 2017.

City of Taylor spokesman Karl Ziomek, said he finds recycling a Kmart building can be tricky in Taylor, due to the center for retail shifting to the city's Wal-Mart.

More than 130 nationwide closures have been announced this year.

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Information from: The Detroit News, http://detnews.com/