The former RTD Motorsports building on North Dirksen Parkway has been vacant since the business relocated in 2016, but it is now being remodeled for a new company coming to Springfield.
RNR Tire Express is a national franchise retailer of tires and custom wheels, specializing in flexible payment plans. The company was established in Tampa, Florida, in 2000 and has grown to more than 180 locations nationwide.
One of its franchisees, RNR Tire Express Midwest, is preparing to open a Springfield location.
“We opened in August 2006 and have 13 locations, mostly in the St. Louis and southern Illinois markets,” said Breanne Braddock, a spokesperson for RNR Tire Express Midwest. “We opened one in Decatur two years ago in January, and the entire central Illinois region is somewhere we’re going to expand with possible locations in Peoria, Bloomington and Champaign.”
The property at 2430 N. Dirksen Parkway was first listed for sale in April 2017 after World of Powersports relocated. The Jackson Family Limited Partnership, based out of Decatur, bought out the RTD Motorsports dealership and in 2016 purchased a nearby building at 3230 Atlanta Drive.
At one point, the owners announced plans to turn the 12,000-square-foot building into a multi-unit retail center, but that did not materialize. It sold in February 2024 for $950,000.
Renovations are now underway, and Braddock said RNR Tire Express may be able to open sooner than planned.
“Initially we were thinking spring, but it could be late winter. The contractors are moving very fast, and the weather has been in everyone’s favor. If that continues, it could be January or February,” she said.
Braddock said the company is already accepting job applications online.
“We are looking for somebody to lead that location as a store manager and five to six support staff initially, then as we grow more positions will open,” she said.
