Grand Rapids Antique Stores Get a Christmas Miracle on Century Avenue

If you love wandering through Grand Rapids’ antique warehouses and losing track of time among dusty finds and unexpected treasures, here’s some good news.

Three beloved antique stores that call the Sligh building on Century Avenue home are officially getting a second chance.

For the past month, the future of Warehouse One Antiques, Century Antiques, and Lost and Found Treasures of Old and New has felt pretty shaky. The massive former furniture factory building that they operate out of has been stuck in legal limbo, leaving vendors and shoppers alike wondering if the lights might suddenly go out for good on this popular shopping destination.

For those who haven’t been nervously following this story: Here's the simple version. The owner of the building fell behind on loans, which landed the property in something called receivership. This basically means the court stepped in and appointed a neutral third party to manage the building while everything gets sorted out.

Earlier this month, there was even a push to shut the building down entirely by one court. A judge said no, at least for now, which bought everyone some time.

On Monday (December 22nd), behind closed doors at Kent County’s 17th Circuit Court, the building’s lender, the court-appointed receiver, and representatives for the antique stores sat down to figure out whether the space could realistically keep operating. The answer, at least for the moment, is yes.

The lender and receiver are now comfortable with the stores staying open while repairs continue, with the goal of getting things back to normal rather than forcing a shutdown. While the building still needs work and the shops are technically on month-to-month leases, the immediate threat of eviction is off the table.

Could the building still be sold someday? Sure. Could a future owner decide to redevelop it? That’s also possible. But for now, the doors stay open, the vendors stay put, and one of Grand Rapids’ most charming antique destinations gets to keep doing what it does best.

For the folks who’ve been holding their breath, it feels like exactly the Christmas miracle they were hoping for.