Best Buy is scheduled to open in the former TJ Maxx space on Grand Central Avenue – within Parkersburg City limits – on Friday, Oct. 31. (Photo by Evan Bevins)

PARKERSBURG — Best Buy is set to open in the former TJ Maxx building on Grand Central Avenue on Halloween.

Plans to bring the electronics retailer to the area have been in the works for more than a year, said Griffin Weatherholt, experience supervisor at the store.

“There’s just not a whole lot of opportunity around this area in terms of appliances, higher-end TVs, home entertainment” systems, he said. “We’re super-excited, very thankful to be here. We’re very excited to be part of the Parkersburg community.”

Although the building is in Grand Central Plaza and faces Grand Central Avenue, the property is actually in Parkersburg.

“Very pleased to see what had become a vacant space now occupied and being used in contributing to our local economy and tax base,” Parkersburg Mayor Tom Joyce said.

Best Buy is scheduled to open in the former TJ Maxx space on Grand Central Avenue – within Parkersburg City limits – on Friday, Oct. 31. (Photo by Evan Bevins)

TJ Maxx moved to a new addition at Grand Central Mall in 2021. In recent years, Sportsman’s Warehouse and Dollar Tree have filled other vacancies in Grand Central Plaza.

The store will employ about 30 people, including full- and part-time workers, Weatherholt said.

Best Buy offers a variety of electronics and will also set up Verizon and AT&T phones, Weatherholt said. There will be many products people can test in interactive displays, he said.

“Whatever product you want to try out, we’ll have it in store,” he said.

The newest tenant in Grand Central Plaza is Best Buy, set to open Oct. 31. (Photo by Evan Bevins)