Posted: 3:39 p.m. Thursday, March 26, 2015
By Alexandra Seltzer
BOYNTON BEACH —
Driving past the mini markets that act more as hangouts on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, it's hard to picture the street decades ago thriving with bars, stores and barber shops.
Back then, they had everything. Now, the Heart of Boynton residents can't do basic shopping in their community.
The Family Dollar will be built at the southeast corner of Martin Luther King Jr. and Seacrest boulevards.

But a Family Dollar is coming to town, at the southeast corner of Seacrest Boulevard and MLK. And the pressure is on, because residents and officials alike say they expect the store to be the first of many commercial developments to follow.
The store should be open by Thanksgiving, representatives with Family Dollar and builder Boos Development said.
"We know the Family Dollar will (reinvigorate) Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. It's important because seniors won't have to go out of their community to shop, and they will be able to afford to shop at Family Dollar," said Norma Pinder, the acting president of the East Boynton Democratic Club.
Boynton Beach and Family Dollar officials break the ground where a Family Dollar store is to open by Thanksgiving.

Boynton Beach officials, residents and project representatives met at the site Thursday morning for a ground-breaking ceremony. It was the second time this week the city had a ground-breaking event in the Heart of Boynton. On Tuesday, they met at the northwest corner of the boulevards to celebrate Poinciana Gardens, a neighborhood that will get street improvements, a bus shelter, and new homes.
Both projects are part of Boynton's ongoing efforts to redevelop the Heart of Boynton. Family Dollar is the first commercial development in at least 40 years, and it will bring between 10 and 15 jobs to the community (not including construction). Officials are working to get a grocery store to open nearby.
"This is just one project. We want to make this happen all the way from Seacrest to Railroad Avenue," Mayor Jerry Taylor told the group. "Let's build this entire street back the way it used to be."Willie Aikens, president of the Heart of Boynton neighborhood association, said the store provides a place for young people to work in the area. He said the development shows "there is something going on in the Heart of Boynton."
"For people to go to a store now, it's a big thing," Aikens said. "It gives them pride and something to hope for."
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