The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
A clothing store, a fast food restaurant, and a multi-purpose retail building are coming to the Flintoba Shopping Centre, a spokesperson for the site developer confirmed yesterday. But Gerhard Rattai, vice-president of Winnipeg-based Kraft Construction, the company behind the development, was not at liberty to release the names of any of the businesses. Rattai said he expects a fall opening for all three buildings, with construction to begin next month. The buildings will be located in the northeast corner of the Flintoba site adjacent to the Wal-Mart turnoff, where site preparations have been underway for several weeks. Agreements are in place with the different businesses but the leases are still being finalized, Rattai said. The fast food restaurant and clothing store would be stand-alone businesses, while the third building would offer space for lease, with offices possibly located in a second storey. Rattai said the building will house a retail store and some service providers. While Rattai could not release the names of the businesses, it's believed that the clothing store in question is Mark's Work Warehouse. The Reminder has confirmed that Mark's Work Warehouse, owned by Canadian Tire, forwarded a proposal last September to Kraft to build a new store at the Flintoba site. Carol Talbot, a spokesperson for the clothing retailer, told The Reminder last year that the company has "a definite interest" in setting up shop at the site. Calls to Mark's Work Warehouse this week had not been returned as of press time. As for the fast food restaurant, it's possible that it is A&W, which has renewed negotiations with Kraft after talks fell apart last month. Fred Trembath, director of development for A&W, said that discussions are back on and that the next few weeks will be crucial to finalizing an agreement. Fewer details were on tap relating to the multi-purpose building, though The Reminder has learned that at least one Main Street business has had serious talks about relocating there. The owner does not wish to have the name of the business published at this time. The continued growth of the Flintoba Shopping Centre is a testament to Flin Flon, in Rattai's view. "I think it's a credit to the community to attract the type of national retailers that have been attracted to Flin Flon," he said. "You've got the three largest national retailers there, from Wal-Mart to Canadian Tire to Westfair Foods (which owns Extra Foods). It's exciting, it really is."
