College Avenue stretch receives another vacancy

Fayetteville is by no means a ghost town, but if you were an outsider whose only glimpse of the city was through a certain stretch of College Avenue, you might think it was headed in that direction.

We noticed late last week that the Cheers business signs had been removed and a ‘For Rent’ sign had been placed in front of the building located at 1673 N. College Ave.

The loss of Cheers is yet another addition to the growing amount of vacant buildings (and realty signs) in the section of College Avenue between North Street and the intersection at Sycamore Street.

Below are a few photos and descriptions of the properties along that stretch of road which are currently vacant.


1200 N. College Ave.


This property is located just south of Rick’s Bakery and has been home to various different businesses. It once housed a beauty college. There is currently a large, yellow Weichert Realtors sign sitting in the parking lot.


1500 N. College Ave.


This is an old Bank of America branch located in front of the Evelyn Hills Shopping Center which currently has about a half dozen vacancies including Chuck E. Cheese which recently moved to Fiesta Square. We’ve heard rumors that an Einstein Bros Bagels was coming here, but there’s still a ‘For Sale’ and a ‘For Lease’ sign out front.


1616 N. College Ave.


This was an E-Z Mart gas station and convenience store for many years. Currently, a Lindsey & Associates, Inc. sign sits in front of the vacant building, whose windows and doors are boarded up. It’s right next door to Evelyn Hills.


1618 N. College Ave.


Located next door to the empty E-Z Mart location, this vacant building was the brief home of Wilma’s Restaurant, which moved to College Avenue after leaving 481 South School where Greenhouse Grille currently resides. There was once a Greek restaurant in this building.


1620 N. College Ave.


Best known as the old Sonic Drive-In, this vacant building was most recently home to Big River BBQ. It’s located right next door to the vacant Wilma’s building which is located right next door to the vacant E-Z Mart location.


1673 N. College Ave.


This was home to Cheers, but recently, the signs have been removed and a small ‘For Rent’ sign placed out in front of the building. It’s located at the intersection of College Avenue and Sycamore Street next door to McDonald’s.


1705 N. College Ave.


This building, which was once a Long John Silver’s location, might soon be getting a tenant. We say that only because the signs out front have recently been removed and the lights have been on inside for a few weeks. There have been rumors circulating for a few years that Starbucks Coffee Company was interested in this location, and most recently a BBQ restaurant, but we have no solid information to back any of that up.


1717 N. College Ave.


This was once a cellular phone store, but has been vacant for quite a while. The tattered orange material which flapped in the wind for most of the year has since been removed along with the signs out front. This leads us to believe it might also soon have a new tenant or owner.