Hobby Lobby plans July opening in Cedar Rapids

Hobby Lobby, a privately-owned chain of craft and home decor stores, plans to open its northeast Cedar Rapids store at the end of July.

The 58,000-square-foot store will be the first tenant to open in Collins Crossing, created by the redevelopment of the 150,000-square-foot former Kmart Plaza across Collins Road NE from Lindale Mall.

Hobby Lobby's 14th location in Iowa will bring between 35 and 50 jobs to the community paying $15 per hour for full-time and $10 per hour for part-time associates. The chain has nearly 600 stores across the nation that average 55,000 square feet in size.

HomeGoods will open a 25,000-square-foot store later this year offering off-price home fashions. The Framingham, Mass., retailer operates 415 stores nationwide, but does not have a store in Iowa.

The Fresh Market, a Greensboro, N.C.-based chain offering a mix of organic and local fresh, quality foods, plans to open its 24,000-square-foot Collins Crossing location in late fall.

Shoe Carnival, an Evansville, Ind.-based family shoe retailer, will have a 15,000-square-foot store in Collins Crossing. The chain, which expects to open its Cedar Rapids location by the end of the year, operates 378 stores in 32 states and Puerto Rico.

RCG Ventures of Atlanta, Ga., the owner of Collins Crossing, is expected to sign additional smaller tenants.

Kmart closed its 43-year-old store in December after the lease was not renewed by RCG Ventures. The redevelopment also displaced a number of long time tenants as well as the Iowa Department of Transportation's drivers license station.

Video Games Etc, which has continued to operate a store during the remodeling, has moved to a different space in Collins Crossing.