Brandon Twp.- An area developer has received a letter of intent from a national retail chain to build a store near the corner of M-15 and the entrance to Brandon High School. Local developer Mike Riddle, of township-based Rison Construction and Lockwood LLC, said negotiations are currently ongoing with a nationwide drugstore chain to open a store at the intersection.
‘Right now we are in negotiations with two national chains. Our intent is to create a business community that features both national and local businesses. I feel one of the national stores will take the corner lot in front of the high school within the next 12 months,? said Riddle.
‘That will anchor the business development’and provide an area along the corridor for local businesses to expand.?
Riddle’s plan for a multiple-business development was presented by partner Steve Collins, also representing Lockwood LLC, to the township planning commission on June 9. The commission approved the preliminary general site plan, which featured about 122,000 square-feet of retail space between eight separate buildings, by a 7-0 vote.
Following the approval, several thousand yards of fill dirt were moved from the Brandon High School parking lot excavation project currently in progress to the development area along M-15. The fill is necessary, said Collins, to make the property buildable.
‘Nothing really has happened on M-15 for several years’since we worked on the Oakwood Plaza at M-15 and Oakhill Road in the 1990s.?
‘Our biggest problem right now is the septic situation,? said Riddle.
‘I was disappointed with the progress over the past few years on the sewage treatment situation. The survey released by the township indicated overwhelmingly that township residents were not interested in the sewers.?
Riddle is referring to a February survey mailed to 1,195 township residents and businesses along the M-15 corridor and around Bald Eagle Lake and Lake Louise, questioning whether they were interested in sewers. Of the 661 cards returned, 416, or 63 percent, said no to sewers, while 245, or 37 percent, said yes.
‘Several of the businesses that have expressed interest in the property say that 19,000 cars per day along M-15 is just enough to warrant their business,? said Riddle. ‘This business corridor along M-15 attracts both commuters and hometown customers’it’s the right spot to develop a solid local economy.?