ARIZONA DAILY STAR
By: Dale Quinn
February 21, 2012
QuikTrip Corp. has purchased a portion of the former De Anza Drive-In and plans to open a location there by the end of the year.
Construction of a QuikTrip convenience store and gas station is expected to begin in May, said company spokesman Mike Thornbrugh.
QuikTrip bought the land on South Alvernon Way south of East 22nd Street from Evergreen Development Co. for about $1.2 million.
Greg Furrier and Rob Tomlinson of PICOR Commercial Real Estate Services brokered the transaction.
QuikTrip purchased a little more than an acre of the former drive-in site.
The rest of the 20-acre site could be developed into a shopping center, or mixed-use development with both office and retail, Furrier said.
The Tulsa, Okla.-based convenience-store chain – expanding rapidly in Tucson – is operating nine locations locally and has three more under construction, not including the site on Alvernon near 22nd Street.
The store on Alvernon will differ from other stores already operating in Tucson, Thornbrugh said. As part of the company’s new concept, it will be larger and have a different look. Employees will prepare for customers hot and cold coffee drinks, soft-serve ice cream and fruit smoothies.
In Tucson, one of the new-look QuikTrip stores will open at 6385 E. Golf Links Road, near East Wilmot Road, in March, Thornbrugh said.
The company is exploring new concepts even as it has done well with its current stores, he said.
“In this business, if you don’t continue to improve your offer, you won’t continue to enjoy success,” Thornbrugh said.
DID YOU KNOW?
De Anza Drive-In closed in October 2009 after showing movies for 58 years.
Contact reporter Dale Quinn at dquinn@azstarnet.com or 573-4197.
