A dollar store is coming to Boulder. Is that good?

On a parcel off Highway 69, just outside of Boulder, construction has started on what will become a 10,500-foot Family Dollar Tree store, promising a wide range of discounted merchandise.

Is that a good thing?

So-called dollar stores are booming across the nation: The top three brands, Dollar General, Dollar Tree and Family Dollar, together accounted for 1,623, or nearly a third, of the major retail openings in the U.S. announced last year, according to Coresight Research, a data and consulting firm. Dollar Tree says it operates over 8,000 stores under the Dollar Tree, Family Dollar and Family Dollar Tree brands in the U.S. and Canada.