Last Updated on December 12, 2023 by Dave Farquhar
The site of 7597 S Lindbergh has a bit of an up-and-down recent history. It’s been vacant since Home Town Buffet closed in 2015, but it’s getting a new tenant soon: Harbor Freight Tools.
What’s being built at Lindbergh and Barracksview?
Old Country Buffet occupied the space at the confluence of South Lindbergh Boulevard, Barracksview Road, and Adworth Road in 63125 since it first opened in 1988. Sometime before 2006 it rebranded to Home Town Buffet, and when the parent company ran into problems, it closed in 2015.
In 2017, Crusoe’s restaurant planned to move into the old Home Town Buffet space and even went so far as to install signage. It looked like a done deal, but they pulled out at the last minute. Rumor was it was due to disagreement with the then-owner about renovations the building needed. The late-80s building isn’t ancient in the grand scheme of things, but old enough that the rumor sounded plausible.
The Crusoe’s signage came down and Crusoe’s remained in Oakville. The other longtime tenant, Family Dollar–the Mountain Lavender Family Dollar, for longtime readers of this blog–closed in 2018. And with those two spots in the plaza vacant, turnover in the rest of the plaza increased. Blight is a strong word, but the area started to feel blighted.
The building changed ownership in late 2021. Signs soon appeared in front of the plaza promising redevelopment, but giving no specifics. The new owners installed a new roof and soffits and gutted the interior over the course of 2022 and 2023. Then in September 2023, more work began in earnest. Pallets of cinder blocks appeared outside the building, and it was clear from the outside work was going on inside, including demolishing the wall between the restaurant and the space once occupied by Family Dollar and Dollar General before that. Something sizable was going in. And it didn’t look like it would be a car wash, for once. All too often, “redevelopment” is a euphemism for building a car wash.
What Harbor Freight means for 63125
Harbor Freight, in case you don’t know, is a discount tool store. Home Depot shares its parking lot with Lindbergh Plaza II, and I’m sure Harbor Freight isn’t Home Depot’s idea of the ideal neighbor. But having a viable retail store anchoring that end should give the plaza a boost it’s needed for several years now. Nearby South County Plaza, adjacent to the recently demolished Kmart, lured away Lindbergh Plaza II’s biggest remaining tenant, a vintage toy store, in 2019. The new store probably means 10 new jobs, but it also means more traffic. Harbor Freight will draw from surrounding communities, not just from the immediate area.
Harbor Freight bringing traffic to the plaza will likely increase its attractiveness to other potential tenants. I can remember when the plaza had the Old Country Buffet, a book store, and a Dollar General all operating. It stayed fairly busy. With Harbor Freight operating, the remaining vacant space should become easier to lease out.
Harbor Freight said in September it expects the new store to open in December 2023. A sign in the store window says its first day of operation will be December 19.
Two long-vacant houses on Adworth Road behind the plaza were also demolished in the fall of 2023. So redevelopment in the area may not be done yet.
David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He started his career as a part-time computer technician in 1994, worked his way up to system administrator by 1997, and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He invests in real estate on the side and his hobbies include O gauge trains, baseball cards, and retro computers and video games. A University of Missouri graduate, he holds CISSP and Security+ certifications. He lives in St. Louis with his family.