A former Rite Aid at 351 Flatbush Avenue in Kingston has a new owner, and it's one that should keep local car owners well stocked in oil filters and wiper blades. Royal Properties announced that it brokered the sale of the property to O'Reilly Auto Parts, putting a national retailer at a corner formerly occupied by the pharmacy chain.
The deal, detailed by Royal Properties, covers an 11,180-square-foot freestanding building sitting on a 1.47-acre corner parcel. The site comes with pylon signage and 41 parking spaces, features that made it an attractive pickup at what the brokerage calls a highly visible intersection of Route 32 and Route 9W. According to the same listing, traffic counts along those roads exceed 27,000 vehicles per day, the kind of exposure that retailers covet when scouting new locations.
A Shopping Corridor Already Packed With Big Names
The parcel doesn't sit in isolation. Royal Properties describes the surrounding area as home to a strong mix of national retailers, including Hannaford, Aldi, Target, The Home Depot, Planet Fitness, Marshalls, Kohl's, ShopRite, Starbucks, Barnes & Noble, Dick's Sporting Goods and Walgreens. As 94.3 Lite FM notes, O'Reilly will be joining a Kingston shopping area anchored by ShopRite, Kohl's, Planet Fitness and Target, placing the new auto parts store within easy reach of shoppers already making the rounds of those big-box stores.
Scott Meshil of Royal Properties represented the seller in the transaction, while Venture Brokerage Group represented the buyer, per the brokerage's announcement. Neither side has disclosed a purchase price or an opening date for the Kingston store, and there's no confirmation yet of whether construction or permitting work has started at the site.
Part of a Broader O'Reilly Push Into Former Rite Aid Spaces
Kingston isn't the only place where O'Reilly has been eyeing empty Rite Aid real estate. In Cortland, county documents filed in February reportedly show the former Rite Aid at 1067 Route 222 was sold to O'Reilly Auto Enterprises, LLC, according to WXHC. That Cortland store had closed during the summer of the previous year after Rite Aid liquidated its stores nationwide, leaving the building vacant until O'Reilly stepped in. WXHC also reports that O'Reilly Automotive, Inc. now operates more than 6,500 locations across the country selling automotive replacement parts.
The pattern extends beyond New York. The Daily News Online reports that O'Reilly plans to open a store in Le Roy, according to the town supervisor, while Crain's Grand Rapids Business reports the chain paid $1.2 million for a closed Rite Aid in Sparta, Michigan, where it plans an 8,000-square-foot retail location. Taken together, the deals suggest O'Reilly has been methodically scooping up shuttered Rite Aid buildings as the pharmacy chain's collapse left retail space open across multiple states.
What Else Is Nearby in Kingston
For Kingston residents, the new auto parts store will sit in a stretch of the city that already draws plenty of foot and vehicle traffic for other reasons. Mickey's Igloo offers ice cream and food in the area, while Dink Pickleball gives locals a place for recreation and exercise nearby. Sojourner Truth State Park is also located in Kingston, rounding out a part of the city that blends retail, recreation and food options along a well-traveled corridor.
