News Photo by Steve Schulwitz Family Video employee Morgan Suszek organizes movies at the store today. The longtime business will close in the next six to eight weeks.

ALPENA — “Help save our video store.”

That’s what the marquee outside of Family Video in Alpena proclaims, promoting a recent fundraiser.

That effort will not be enough, however, store Manager Chrystal Stubl said on Tuesday.

During the Alpena store’s fundraiser, the video rental outlet’s corporate offices called Stubl and told her the local store — and all others in the chain — will close.

Stubl said she wasn’t given an exact date for the final day of operations, but it will be in about six to eight weeks.

The store has two employees.

Renovations at the store have been ongoing for some time, and the video selection has been scaled down.

The front portion of the building on Chisholm Street is currently vacant, and a real estate sign is posted outside, promoting the availability of the new space, which is still under construction.

Video chains, such as Family Video and Blockbuster, have slowly closed nationwide for several years as more streaming options such as Netflix, Hulu, and Disney+ have become more bountiful and accepted by movie viewers.

However, one customer in the store on Tuesday said she doesn’t have cable at her home and depends on Family Video to provide her content.

There are few options for video rental in the Alpena area. Rental kiosks such as Redbox machines are placed in or outside of some businesses, but the list of available titles are limited.

Family Video adds to a list of Alpena-area businesses closed in the last year, including J.C. Penney, Neiman’s Family Market, the Burger King near the Alpena Mall, and Gen-Ar’s.