GetGo, Shops Planned for Former Catalano's Site

Redevelopment plans for the former Catalano's Stop & Shop on Wilson Mills Road include eight gas pumps, a 5,569-square-foot convenience store/cafe, a car wash and a 17,265-square-foot retail space incorporating part of the existing building.

"The plan as of right now will be to demolish a portion of the Catalano's facility," said Lance Osborne, president and chief investment officer of Osborne Capital Group, which would own the property. Osborne said his company did the same thing in developing the Discount Drug Mart on Alpha Drive.

He said a bank is interested in a 3,000-square-foot space and other tenants could be restaurants and general retailers.

Osborne and Pasquale Avolio, director of real estate development and construction for Giant Eagle, presented plans to the Planning and Zoning Commission on Monday. They will address city council at a Committee of the Whole meeting at 7:15 p.m. today.

Osborne Capital Group would own the site and lease space to Giant Eagle. Osborne said he would like a lot split for the property so that Giant Eagle would be protected and said a similar arrangement was made for KeyBank at the Shoppes at Alpha Place.

"Most tenants under a lease situation want their own plotted lot," Osborne said. He explained that if a tenant is part of a larger lot, they risk having their use eliminated if the landlord does not pay taxes and the property goes into foreclosure.

However, Councilman Robert Mastrangelo, commission chairman, said splitting the parcels would create odd configurations and require a lot more variances. Plans are for the gas station/convenience store at the west end of the property, closest to Wilson Mills Road, with the car wash at the east end, parallel to the convenience store.

The site is zoned for local business use and would have to be rezoned for general business, which would require council and voter approval. Mastrangelo said codes are unclear as to whether service stations are allowed in general business zoning and the city is waiting for a legal opinion on that matter from Law Director Timothy Paluf.

Mastrangelo added that there was also a question as to whether city officials can added gas stations as a use under general business or if the matter would have to go to the ballot. Regardless, he would like the matter settled because the BP station on Wilson Mills Road is a nonconforming use and couldn't be rebuilt under current zoning.