Dollar Tree set for grand opening at Hazard’s Black Gold Shopping Center

Dollar Tree’s ribbon cutting at Hazard’s Black Gold Shopping Center added another budget retailer to the county’s fastest-changing commercial corridor, giving Perry County shoppers one more place to buy everyday basics close to home. The grand opening was announced for 9 a.m. Thursday, June 18, and it fit into a larger retail buildout that local leaders say could help keep more spending inside Hazard.

The event was tied to materials provided by the Hazard Perry County Chamber of Commerce, which has framed its work around new business, commercial growth, and the retention and expansion of existing businesses. For shoppers who watch every dollar, a Dollar Tree at Black Gold means another place to pick up household items, school supplies, snacks, and other low-cost essentials without leaving the county. In a small market like Perry County, where the population was 28,473 in the 2020 census and was estimated at 26,555 in 2025, that kind of convenience carries added weight.

The store is part of the broader Black Gold Plaza redevelopment announced by Drinkard Development on March 13, 2025. The company described the project as a $16.5 million private capital investment that had been in planning for more than three years. Local officials said the redevelopment could bring jobs, revenue, and future development, while the site itself was undergoing storm drain relocation ahead of further demolition and construction. Some construction was expected in early 2026, with more work continuing into fall 2026.

Mayor Happy Mobelini said the project is the kind of announcement that can ripple beyond one storefront. He said it can affect the community in “various ways, including revenue, job creation, and potential for more future development.” That matters in Hazard, the county seat, which had 5,263 residents in the 2020 census and sits at the center of Perry County’s retail choices.

Black Gold Plaza was originally built in the late 1980s, and the current redevelopment has turned an older shopping center into a new retail cluster. Publicly described tenants include TJ Maxx, Five Below, Hobby Lobby, Dollar Tree and a GoTime gas station. Perry County Tourism previously listed opening dates of May 17 for TJ Maxx, May 22 for Five Below, June 8 for Hobby Lobby and June 18 for Dollar Tree, showing the center opening piece by piece rather than all at once.

For Hazard shoppers, the immediate result is simple: more low-cost retail choices at Black Gold, more traffic for the shopping center, and another sign that one of the county’s most visible commercial projects is still moving forward.