Kesslers Diamond Center plans Germantown store

Kesslers Diamond Center operations in Menomonee Falls will consolidate and move to Germantown.

The retail, goldsmith production and offices in Menomonee Falls are located at three separate sites, owner Richard Kessler said. The store is at W15340 Appleton Ave.

The operation will replace the La-Z-Boy Furniture Gallery at W16920 County Line Road in Germantown.

The Germantown Village Board on Monday amended the planned development district agreement for the 2.86-acre site.

Property owner Frank Granier Real Estate II accepted an offer from Robert Kessler to acquire the 21,250-square-foot store, according to village documents.

Kesslers will use about 6,000 square feet each for retail sales, office space and a warehouse. A goldsmith production and assembly area will be located in the remaining 3,000 square feet.

The plan calls for increasing the number of parking spaces from 41 to 63. Germantown Village Planner Jeffrey Retzlaff said the extra parking spaces will be for office employees. The Kesslers operation will have about 30 to 35 employees, about 25 more than La-Z-Boy.

Kesslers is expecting about 50 to 75 customers daily, which is about 30 to 50 more than La-Z-Boy, and will be open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and noon to 4 p.m. Sunday.

Richard Kessler said about $1.5 million will be spent to transform the Germantown building. The store is expected to open in January, when the operations in Menomonee Falls will close. Construction is expected to start next month and last about five months.

Kesslers also has stores in Appleton, Brookfield, Madison and Greenfield.