More and more retail space is opening up around the metro. The windows at some strip malls are covered with "for lease" signs.

They are spread all across the metro, empty or near-empty strip malls, from 120th and Military Avenue in Omaha to the shops around the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs.

The strip mall at 168th and Maple has one tenant, a salon right in the middle. The developer, Jay Noddle, tells Channel 6 News the strip mall market is saturated, especially in west Omaha. Even so, they are still being built. There’s a new one at 132nd and West Center.

"A lot can happen,” says Score’s Bob Balzerick. “That's the reason you have a lot of strip malls that are sitting empty. Those things have been in planning in the last two, three years and now all of a sudden they're ready for people and there aren't many people going into the retail business."

Twice a month, every month, Balzerick helps people with the decision of whether to start a small business. "Marketing, marketing, marketing." The workshops usually draw 20-25 people, but in this economy on one night there were just seven.

"I was laid off about two months ago,” says Sharon Weltz of Omaha, who has an idea for a business. "I'm coming here to find out if this is something I'm cut out to do." She plans to work out of the home so she won't need office space. Experts say now is a good time to rent.

Good deals are out there because there's so much supply and qualified workers. "Help is plentiful,” says Balzerick. “There's a lot to be said about going into the service business. Retail is tough."

In a down economy, business plans that once called for a 12-month turnaround on a strip mall have been changed to 30 months, a good indicator of when experts think we'll see more small businesses take root.

One thing complicating all of this is that borrowing money is not as easy as it used to be and that makes it harder for a successful small business to expand.