DeHarts Auke Bay Store is pictured on Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018. (Kevin Gullufsen | Juneau Empire)

DeHarts Auke Bay Store is pictured on Thursday, Sept. 13, 2018. (Kevin Gullufsen | Juneau Empire)

Amid construction, owner puts DeHarts up for sale

As Auke Bay grows, a longtime business may soon change hands

Auke Bay is changing, and with it, so will DeHarts Auke Bay Store.

The convenience store and bait shop — a staple for boaters and residents out the road — is up for sale for $2,675,000. Current owner Dan Hickok told the Empire that he’s not in a hurry to sell the place, but the business has suffered recently due to road construction in the area.

“With the struggle of the past five years I just put it on the market kind of deal, with no desperation whatsoever. It’s been struggling the past five years but there’s light at the end of the tunnel,” Hickok said.

Major road reconstruction from Fritz Cove Road to Seaview Avenue has slowed traffic in the area in recent years. Last summer, vehicles sometimes had to wait 10 or 15 minutes to share one-lane access on Glacier Highway. The building of a roundabout next to DeHarts before that also limited access to the store.

All the construction has hurt business, Hickok said, by about 20 percent. The store depends on drop in customers — the fisherman who needs a bait or tackle before departing from nearby Auke Bay, the customer who needs to gas up before heading out the road.

Hickok said dealing with construction have been tough.

“We almost threw up our arms and said enough already,” he said.

If somebody doesn’t buy the store, at least he’s past the trial and error of dealing with road construction immediately next to the building, he said.

Auke Bay is in the middle of a major redesign aimed to accommodate growth in recreation, commerce, housing and marine transportation in the area. After months of public planning, the City and Borough of Juneau Assembly adopted the Auke Bay Area Plan in 2015.

Parts of the plan have already been put in place, like the expanded parking at Don D. Statter Memorial Harbor, the roundabout and redone portions of Glacier Highway.

Caldwell Banker’s Errol Champion, the realtor representing the sale of DeHarts, said the property is attractive because of its location.

“If you forgot that quart of milk or that six pack of beer, DeHarts is where you’re going to get it,” Champion said.

DeHarts was built in the 1950s by Jim and Jane DeHart. Hickok has owned the store for 11 years.


• Contact reporter Kevin Gullufsen at 523-2228 and kgullufsen@juneauempire.com. Follow him on Twitter at @KevinGullufsen.


More in Home

U.S. Rep. Nick Begich III, R-Alaska, talks with supporters during a campaign meet-and-greet Oct. 12, 2024, at the Southeast Alaska Real Estate office near the Nugget Mall. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire file photo)
‘This is no town hall. This is propaganda’; Begich takes heat at first virtual constituent forum

Congressman set to deliver his first joint address to the Alaska Legislature on Thursday.

Thunder Mountain Middle School’s Minali Reid works a pin on Schoenbar Knights grappler Loriel Zapanta in the girls 106-pound championship match during the Southeast Middle School Regional Wrestling Tournament on Saturday at TMMS. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Empire)
Falcons claim Southeast Middle School Championship

Inspired by heroes, wrestlers grapple for medals and titles.

Local organizers and speakers at a “No Kings on Presidents Day” protest lead a drum chant and dance Monday in front of the Alaska State Capitol. (Mark Sabbatini / Juneau Empire)
‘No Kings on Presidents Day’ protest of Trump draws more than 400 to Alaska State Capitol

Firing of federal workers, elimination of DEI and LGBTQ+ policies among objections of participants.

Juneau School District Superintendent Frank Hauser testifies in support of a Base Student Allocation increase on Jan. 29, 2025, at the Alaska State Capitol. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire file photo)
Superintendent suggests Juneau school board assume a $400 BSA increase in district’s budget

Some board members hesitant to depart from no-increase policy, express concern about Trump’s actions.

Runners start the Sweetheart Relay on Saturday at Sandy Beach. (Klas Stolpe / Juneau Empire)
Sweetheart race, a run for love and waffles

Saturday race features appetites aplenty in diverse field.

Juneau Douglas’s Elias Dybdahl makes a layup during Juneau Douglas 58-53 loss to Ketchikan at the Clarke Cochrane Gymnasium on Saturday. (Christopher Mullen/ Ketchikan Daily News)
Crimson Bears split road series, fall to Kings in Ketchikan on Saturday after win on Friday

JDHS finishes 1-3 in conference, will return to Ketchikan in three weeks for Region V tournament.

Members of the Alaska State Employees Association and AFSCME Local 52 holds a protest on the steps of the Alaska State Capitol on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)
Alaska state employees rally for more pay and benefits on same day mass federal firings occur

Participants at state Capitol seek revival of pensions, release of state salary data withheld by governor.

President Donald Trump speaks to reporters before boarding Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland, on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025. President Trump shared a quotation on social media, making it clear it was one he wanted people to absorb: “He who saves his Country does not violate any Law.” (Al Drago/The New York Times)
Trump: ‘He who saves his Country does not violate any Law’

Quote sometimes attributed to Napoleon posted on White House’s official X account.

A U.S. Forest Service office sign in Juneau on Feb. 14, 2025. (Jasz Garrett / Juneau Empire)
Trump’s federal layoffs hit wide range of Alaska agencies on Friday, with fears of many more to come

Murkowski: “Trying to get answers about the impact…but the response so far has been evasive and inadequate.”

Most Read