SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CAPITOL CITY NOW) – There’s change to report in the auto repair business along MacArthur Blvd., according to Springfield Business Journal executive editor Michelle Ownbey.

“It’s already started undergoing some renovations,” Ownbey told the WTAX Morning Newswatch. “If you’ve driven by the former Hiller Automotive property on MacArthur, it’s been vacant, of course, since Hiller closed at the end of last year, but a local guy, Kenton Childs, who owned and operated Midas franchises for many years, just purchased the property in a deal that closed Sept. 30.

“Throughout his career he’s had as many as 33 different Midas franchises across the country,” continued Ownbey, “but in the last few years, he has sold off most of those stores, and now he has just two – Rhode Island and Connecticut, interestingly enough. He says he is currently negotiating with a New Jersey-based company that acquired a lot of his franchisees, including – Springfield has one other Midas already, over on Stevenson Drive, and apparently. that group is interested in securing the MacArthur location as well, so he says it’s about a 99 pct done deal at this point.”