The Salvation Army on Main Street will have to find new digs. (Google Street View)

The Salvation Army says one of its thrift stores is being forced out of a location on Fredericton's north side just after completing renovations.

The Main Street store was expecting to reopen in about two weeks after being closed since December for renovations.

A full staff was hired, $30,000 was spent on new fixtures and debit machines, and workers spent the past few months patching holes and painting, said Bill May, the organization's regional property manager.

May said he understands the landlord's business decision to sign a deal with a new tenant for twice the rent, but he would have liked more notice.

"He understood what we were doing. He understood the money we were investing in the property. And if he had other interests, we just wish he'd have been up front and told us so we could decide whether to invest the time and money," he said.

The store can take most of the new equipment with it, May said, but a new location needs to be found quickly and the organization would like to help employees who've already quit their old jobs.

The store profits are used to support Salvation Army programs such as food banks, shelters, addiction treatment and children's camps.