Once A Wal-Mart: The New Lives Of Big Boxes

Across the country, communities are turning abandoned big-box stores like Kmart and Wal-Mart into churches, schools, libraries — even museums devoted to everything from Spam to Route 66.

Julia Christensen, an artist and professor at Oberlin College, crisscrossed the country to find out how these sprawling structures are being repurposed. Christensen first got the idea to study big boxes in her hometown, Bardstown, Ky., the bourbon capital of the world.

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In her book, Big Box Reuse, Julia Christensen documents former Wal-Marts, Kmarts and Home Depots across the country that have been converted and repurposed into schools, churches and apartments. (and libraries)