A public hearing will be held on Thursday, Nov. 9 before the Oxford Township Planning Commission concerning a special land use (SLU) request to allow a drive-through for one of the units in a proposed strip mall at 595 N. Lapeer Rd.

PELJ Properties, LLC., based in Birmingham, owns the 2.72-acre site and filed the application for the SLU.

The hearing is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. and will take place in the meeting room of the township hall located at 300 Dunlap Rd., just north of Seymour Lake Rd.

PELJ Properties submitted a site plan to the township for the construction of an 11,120-square-foot strip mall, named Oxford Commons, on the site, which is zoned for C-2 general commercial use.

On Oct. 10, the two-story building that had stood there since 1980 and contained a number of eateries over the years, including the Long Branch Saloon and Kalloway’s Restaurant and Pub, was demolished.

Based on the site plan, the proposed strip mall will contain a 4,400-square-foot Leo’s Coney Island on the south end with seating for 144 customers.

The resident agent for PELJ Properties is Leo Stassinopoulos, president and founder of Leo’s Coney Island. The first Leo’s Coney Island opened in 1972 and today, there are 60 locations.

There are already Leo’s Coney Island restaurants in Lake Orion and Lapeer, so it made sense to Stassinopoulos to put one in Oxford, given all the new development that’s going on in that area such as Abbey Ridge apartments.

“(They) all do a good business, so I decided to go (in) between,” he said. “When I was driving one day up (to) Lapeer, I saw the (for-sale) sign, so I called our real estate guy and I got it.”

A 2,160-square-foot space is depicted on the north end of the proposed strip mall and in between, the plan shows three units, each containing 1,520 square feet of space.

The proposed drive-through would be for the 2,160-square-foot space.

Stassinopoulos indicated the tenant for this space has not been determined.

“My guy in charge is talking to people right now,” he said. “I don’t know what he’s going to have. I’m not sure yet.”

More than enough on-site parking will be provided, according to the plan.

Ninety-one spaces are required per the township zoning ordinance and the plan shows a total of 123.