A new hardware store with strong family history is opening in Pella next year, and the PACE Alliance Dutch Greeters celebrated the kick-off to construction on Tuesday afternoon.

A groundbreaking ribbon-cutting was held at the site of the new Kempker’s True Value, located on Washington Street east of the Pella Fareway. The new space will include a 12,000-square foot hardware store with rentals, and multiple commercial spaces for additional development.

Kempker’s True Value was founded in 1970 in Fort Madison, and has expanded to Mount Pleasant, Burlington, Grimes, and Huxley. Dustin Kempker has been operating the Burlington location and living in Pella for the past few years, and is excited for the possibilities in the new store.

“My family moved to Pella four years ago, and we are retail, hardware minded people, so the first thing I thought about was this community and serving it with hardware, and bringing that to this area, so that’s what started this local journey.”

Andy Stoecken with Septagon Construction says he’s excited to work on a project like this and to bring a signature commercial property to the community, and anticipates work will continue as long as the weather holds out this winter, with projected completion by sometime in the middle of 2026.

“It’s a 20,000-square foot pre-engineered building, and obviously, a need that Pella has,” he says. “The location of this store is amazing, you get this busy thoroughfare, all the time, people are coming through.”

Kempker says the goal would be to open shortly after facility completion, and that they are creating a Facebook page for the store to share a better timeline as things become more clear.

Hear more about the project on an upcoming Let’s Talk Pella.