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Flea market will move into long vacant grocery
By CHASE SQUIRES, Times Staff Writer
DADE CITY -- A Zephyrhills entrepreneur has big dreams for a vacant shopping center that has stood for years as an eyesore along the U.S. 98 bypass. Paul Semanco is preparing to bring his auction business and an indoor flea market to the old Kash n' Karry shopping center, vacant since the mid 1990s. "I've been down in Zephyrhills since May with the auction, and we've just run out of room," Semanco said. "We just need more. It's been very popular." Semanco said that for the past three years he has run the Midway Flea Market in North Palmetto, a market that sprawls across 21 acres with more than 500 booths. An indoor flea market in Dade City should prove popular, he said. "I was looking around, checking out the area, and came across (real estate broker) Lewis Abraham," Semanco said. "We got together, and we came up with a deal." At his auctions, Semanco said, he typically sells a variety of new merchandise, electronics, tools and other items that are shipped in from all over the country, the result of overstocks, store closings or other situations. He occasionally holds antique auctions as well. Semanco said that at first he plans to lease the 24,000-square-foot empty grocery store, running three auctions a week, with about 80 booths in the flea market. But eventually, he said, he envisions adding outdoor stalls in the large parking area, if the City Commission approves. If all goes well, Semanco said, he may buy the shopping center, renovating it as he goes along. "It's been a good experience," he said Friday. "I am quite pleased. I've opened plenty of business in my life, and I'm happy with Dade City. Everybody I've dealt with, the zoning people, Fire Department, everybody, have been really good to work with." The old Kash n' Karry center has been an eyesore and a target of renovation talk for years. Business leaders have pitched it to companies looking for additional space, but without success. Most recently, the center was used as overflow parking for the Kumquat Festival. Inside the cavernous former grocery store, Semanco has refurbished the floors and added extensive lighting. Semanco usually holds three auctions a week: Two, on Tuesday and Friday nights, are open to the public. A third, at 2 p.m. Thursdays, is open to dealers only. He expects to open for business at his new location Thursday, with the indoor flea market to open soon. "I've built up a pretty good following in Zephyrhills," he said. "I think they'll follow us here." -- Chase Squires covers news about Dade City. He can be reached at (352) 521-5757, ext. 27 or toll-free 1-800-333-7505, ext. 6108, then 27. His e-mail address is squires@sptimes.com
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