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A new candy shop and a new popcorn shop are slated to open in the area, while Wildforyogurt is relocating within Genesee Center to a bigger space with street access, a new name and a new menu.

The candy shop is called Rudolph's Sugar Shack, and its proprietors are no strangers to the downtown food scene: Dawn and Marc Schulz, owners of and . Monday, Dawn Schulz said with a laugh that they are opening Rudolph's because their children are "very tired of hearing us talk about beer and barbecue all the time."

Located at 99 Genesee St., which was last occupied by Finger Lakes Variety & Sports, the Schulzes' shop takes its name from the "RUDOLPH's" lettering in its tiled entryway floor. The building was once the site of Rudolph's Jewelry Store, a Syracuse chain with more than 20 locations in New York and New Jersey in the mid-20th century.

The Schulzes, who've wanted to open a downtown candy shop for a couple years,  the building in December for $90,000, according to Cayuga County property records.

Dawn Schulz said it'll take at least two months to prepare the building's first-floor space to reopen as Rudolph's Sugar Shack. The building needs plumbing and roof work, she continued, as well as a new furnace. After they open Rudolph's, the Schulzes plan to also renovate the building's upper three floors for use as apartments and possibly Airbnb spaces. 

Before that, though, the first floor of 99 Genesee will be full of sugary tenants. Dawn Schulz said the shop will stock ice cream, mini doughnuts, candy, chocolates made in-house and more. Other possibilities include cupcakes, cakes and a coffee section. And, using spent grain from Prison City's brewery, Rudolph's baking equipment will make rolls for the brewpub.

"We absolutely love pastries and baking and sugar — anything to do with that," Dawn Schulz said. "And we thought it'd be a nice complement to our other two businesses."

Blocks away at 30 E. Genesee St., signage indicates Laurie's Li'l Popcorn Shoppe will move in. Owner Laurie Buttaro could not be reached for comment. She operated a  of the same name in Seneca Falls, but its phone number is disconnected. Work continues on the Auburn building, which is advertising gourmet popcorn, crafts, candy, coffee, gift baskets and more.

As the two new businesses get their buildings in shape, Wildforyogurt is doing the same with its new location in Genesee Center.

Owner Mathew Wild the frozen yogurt business in a windowless space toward the rear of the center in July 2013. After about two years, though, Wild pizza, chicken wings and other hot food options to boost his wintertime sales. His move within Genesee Center, to a larger space with windows facing the corner of South and Genesee, is the next stage in his business's growth.

Renamed Wild's Eats and Sweets, the sit-down restaurant will feature a pizzeria-style menu with frozen yogurt, hard ice cream, milkshakes, flurries and smoothies, Wild said Monday. A soup and salad bar will also be installed at a later date.

As he painted the walls, Wild said the space was formerly a gym with an open floor and locker rooms, requiring a complete remodel. One result of that is a new room for parties and private events.

Wild's Eats and Sweets will be open seven days a week starting in late August or early September, Wild said. It will also be open until 2 or 3 a.m. some nights for late crowds, he said.

"It's nice, a lot of people come downtown," he said. "You have two pizza shops or two Mexican places or two Italian places — in the end it's just going to draw more people and get busier."