As Decatur resident Rose Elliott perused the new Habitat for Humanity ReStore on Tuesday, she said she was grateful to get relief from the heat.

Habitat officials said hundreds have visited the new facility at 1123 Central Parkway S.W., which opened Tuesday after operating six years at 620 Wilson St. N.E.

Elliott said she could shop only for a limited time this summer at Habitat’s old location because it didn’t have air conditioning.

“It got so hot in there that you would go in, and if you didn’t see what you were looking for, you would go right back out,” she said. “But in here, you can shop around.”

The nonprofit home-improvement store filed 310 transactions Tuesday and 141 Wednesday. Manager Joe Bachuss said the store averaged 70 daily transactions at the old facility.

The 19,000-square-foot building, which housed Emmanuel Church International until 2008, sparked a large response from the community.

“People have seen our signs up and have heard us talking about it at the old store,” he said.

“Our Facebook presence is up. A lot of people have also heard about the store through word of mouth.”

Since the Decatur ReStore opened in 2006, Habitat for Humanity of Morgan County has looked to expand the store, which sells reusable items and uses proceeds to build homes for low-income families living in substandard housing.

Habitat for Humanity leased the former ReStore building and cut a third of its monthly costs by taking ownership of the Central Parkway facility.

For six years, the Habitat organization saved about $100,000 to purchase its own building. Those funds were used for renovations and as a down payment for the new facility.

Lawana Harville, a Decatur resident who has shopped at the ReStore since it opened six years ago, said she thinks the new facility will increase business for the outlet store.

“I think they’ll draw a larger clientele because of the environment,” she said. “It’s nicer over here and cleaner over here.”

Decatur resident Jessica Perry said she only visited the old Wilson Street facility a few times, but she plans to become a regular customer at the new location.

“I’m like a kid in a candy store,” she said. “I didn’t know they had half the stuff they have here.”