Dollar General to open at former Four Corners site in Walkerville.

Dollar General photo

Dollar General to open at former Four Corners site in Walkerville.

Late community leader Jay Conklin, who owned the Four Corners Pizza and Ice Cream Shoppe, was a key figure in business development in Walkerville.

By Allison Scarbrough, Editor.

WALKERVILLE — A new Dollar General store will open at the site of the former Four Corners Pizza and Ice Cream Shoppe with a tentative spring opening date.

“DG is currently under construction on a new location at 266 E. Main Street in Walkerville, Michigan,” said Dollar General Corporation Public Relations Coordinator Emma Hall. “At this time, a store opening is slated for spring 2022, but understand that construction progress may alter this date.”

“Jay Conklin built a pizza shop on that Walkerville corner in 2006,” said his widow Carol Conklin. “When he learned he had cancer, his son Robert and myself – his wife – helped Jay find the right business to take over that property. Jay passed in Sept 2021, and we sold the property to Dollar General as they are a good fit for Walkerville. Walkerville has no grocery store, and Dollar General is planning on carrying a small grocery department that will help this community tremendously. 

Dollar General photo

“We had a three-bedroom house behind the shop and a three-bedroom rental house also,” said Conklin. “Dollar General bought the 6 acres that these properties sat on. They will have frontage on both Main Street and 176th Avenue. They have torn down all three properties and within one day it was all leveled and hauled away. You cannot tell there was ever anything on that corner.

“Jay was very civic minded and over the years he brought many businesses to Walkerville,” said Conklin. “At one time, he had a game room next to the grocery store. In 1980, he bought the old post office and opened a video shop. When the village stopped the garbage pick up, he opened a transfer station so people could get rid of their trash. And in 2006, he brought fast food, pizza and soft serve ice cream to the area. 

“When he found out he had cancer, he and his son Robert contacted Dollar General to work on a deal to bring a small grocery set-up to town. They will carry produce, fruits, bread, milk, etc. as the residents must travel at least 20 or more miles in any direction to get their basic staples. I understand they will also carry beer and wine. We looked at many offers, and felt Dollar General fit the needs of the community the best. 

“Jay also was on the Walkerville School Board for 26 years, the local fire department — lifelong — and the village council for many years. He served on the road commission for a time and was president of the Crystal Valley Care Fund. He also belonged to the Hesperia Lodge of the Masons and was a member of Operating Engineers locals 324 and 302 for 35 years. He worked the Alaska Pipeline and spent his last 12 years as a crane operator for Erickson Crane and Rigging in North Muskegon. He also was a lifelong supporter of a (Native American) orphanage in South Dakota. He passed on Sept 15, 2021 after an 18-month battle with lung cancer. 

“I know he’s very proud that Walkerville will be benefiting from his beliefs in civic duty,” said his wife.

“Our customers are at the center of all that we do, and meeting customers’ needs is Dollar General’s top priority when choosing store locations,” said Hall. “In selecting store sites, we take a number of factors into consideration, carefully evaluating each potential new store location to ensure we can continue to meet our customers’ price, value and selection needs. We further strive to provide convenience for customers who may not have affordable nearby retail options.

Dollar General photo

“This store will serve customers with approximately 8,500 sales floor square feet and provide the community with quality, name-brand and private brand merchandise such as foods, health and beauty products, home cleaning supplies, housewares, stationery, seasonal items and basic clothing.

“The store will employ approximately six to 10 employees, depending on the individual needs of the store.” Those interested in applying should go to dollargeneral.com/careers.

“Dollar General gives its customers more than everyday low prices on merchandise as part of its mission of serving others,” said Hall. “Dollar General is deeply involved in the communities it serves and is an ardent supporter of literacy and education through the Dollar General Literacy Foundation, which awards grants each year to nonprofit organizations, schools and libraries within a 15-mile radius of a Dollar General store or distribution center to support adult, family, summer and youth literacy programs.” For more information about the program, visit www.dgliteracy.com.

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