New retail life for former library

Yonkers city officials today will welcome the first retail tenant at the former Yonkers Public Library building on downtown Main Street.

Deals Stores. the discount retailer, held a grand opening today in a 9,500-square-foot ground floor space at 7 Main St., a three-story building originally leased by Genung”™s Department Store in 1933. The property has been vacant since the city”™s main library relocated to the new Riverfront Library in 2002.

The streetfront retail space is part of a $10.6 million redevelopment of the approximately 80-year-old building by Fidelco Realty Group, based in Millburn, N.J. Fidelco is the sole remaining partner in Yonkers of Struever Fidelco Cappelli L.L.C., the city”™s downtown master developer. Fidelco expects to open 23 upper-floor housing units in the fall as The Library Lofts.

The city of Yonkers was awarded a $5.45 million state grant for the redevelopment from the Empire State Development Corp. Restore New York Communities Initiative. The program provides municipalities with financial assistance to revitalize commercial and residential properties, especially blighted or abandoned ones, to encourage neighborhood growth.

Deals previously opened a Yonkers store at 896 McLean Ave. Its parent company, Dollar Tree Inc. operates more than 4,700 discount variety stores in 48 states and five Canadian Provinces with total retail selling space of 41.2 million square feet.

Founded in 1986, the company is based in Chesapeake, Va.