BIDDEFORD — On Tuesday, at the Palace Diner, new owners Chad Conley and Greg Mitchell were looking over documents on their computer, cleaning up and hard at work on aspects of the restaurant to get the place ready for business.

Conley said he and his business partner were looking for a space to open a restaurant in Portland last fall, but couldn’t find the right situation.

“On a whim we drove down a year ago … and we thought Biddeford could be a good place,” he said.

When the owners of the diner decided they no longer wanted to run it, the two men stepped up and signed a lease in December.

Since then, Conley and Mitchell, who both have a culinary backgrounds, have been experimenting with menu items and gearing up for their grand opening March 12.

The two are just some of the latest entrepreneurs who see the potential of Biddeford’s downtown, even as some recently opened businesses have closed for varied reasons.

Earlier this month, after less than a year in business, Saco River Yarns, located at the Pepperell Mill Campus, closed its doors.

“I am certain that this seems abrupt to some and a surprise, but the time has come for many, many reasons to close this chapter and be open to a new one,” stated owner Lisa Johnson in a written statement to customers and the press.

Also earlier this month, there was a good-bye reception for the Downtown Dollar store on Main Street, said Heart of Biddeford Executive Director Delilah Poupore.

Store owner Dan DuCharme had no comment on why the store closed or whether it was closed for good. DuCharme continues to operate DAD’s Cigar Parlor & Tobacco Shoppe.

While some businesses are on the rocks, that doesn’t stop others from trying their luck.

For the second time, the City of Biddeford and Heart of Biddeford, a downtown revitalization organization, sponsored the Main Street Challenge, awarding incentive packages to three entrepreneurs: Mike Harris, who will open a retail store for his business Desert Moon Leather; Stacy Cooper, who plans to open The Biscuit Company, a biscuit-centered eatery; and Shonee Strickland, who wants to open a micro-brewery, which is yet to be named.

The opening of a hobby shop, barber and hair salon in downtown are also on the horizon. By her count, that’s seven new businesses that will open in the not-too-distant future, said Poupore.

Other businesses that have recently opened their doors include suger, a retail store on Alfred Street; Banded Horn Brewing Company, a micro-brewery at Pepperell Mill Campus; Elements: Books Coffee Beer; Dahlia’s Delights vegetarian restaurant; and the woodworking shop Tote Road.

Whether the new or about-to-open businesses will last for the long term is still unknown.

“It’s still difficult to be a retail store in downtown Biddeford,” said Poupore.

However, she said, “I think the momentum is toward more business moving in.”

While the age of the large department store in small towns and cities anchoring a Main Street may be over, she said, there is still opportunity for small niche stores, especially those with an experiential element, to be successful.

There are some new businesses in the works that have that element, such as The Biscuit Company, where customers will be able to watch the cook at work. Desert Moon Leather could also craft leather goods in the retail store.

Even Palace Diner has a fairly open kitchen. Conley said he also hopes to encourage an air of friendly camaraderie among the staff and customers and between the customers themselves.

Other stores where customers can find specialty products while watching the production process include suger, where clothes are produced onsite, and Tote Road, which is not only a retail store but also an active woodworking shop.

“We hope to keep this trend growing,” said Poupore, adding that she hopes that will help increase foot traffic on Main Street and throughout the downtown.

One way HOB plans to bring in more foot traffic and more stores, she said, is by holding some focus groups with the University of New England’s Biddeford campus students, faculty and staff. The goal of the focus groups would be to find out what kinds of stores would attract students, and then hopefully interest an entrepreneur in opening such a business.

— Staff Writer Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 324 or dmendros@journaltribune.com.