CLARION, Pa. (EYT) — Business expansions in Rimersburg and Madison Township won preliminary approvals of land development applications by the Clarion County Planning Commission at the group’s November meeting.
A new Dollar General Store in Madison Township was given a go ahead along with the addition of two small additions to the former Archway/Davis cookie building on Baker Street in Rimersburg (photo above).
The new Dollar Store will be located to the west of Rimersburg on State Route 68. The 10,640 square foot store will be built on a 1.31-acre parcel, replacing the current Dollar General in Rimersburg.
In addition to receiving preliminary approval for its land development application, the Commission approved a modification request for relief from 10 ft. x 20 ft. minimum parking space and allowed to substitute 9 ft. by 19 ft. spaces and expand the number of space to 40 instead of 27.
Timothy Weinman, president of PennTex Ventures, a private development company based in Greensburg, presented some background on the new store.
“We are with what is called a preferred developer for the Dollar General retail chain,” said Weinman. “Dollar General is a national company with over 12,000 stores across the United States based in Nashville, Tennessee. They came to us a while back and said they have an existing store in Rimersburg. It’s downtown and has limited-to-no parking. It has very difficult delivery facilities, and we have the large WB-60 trucks come in, and we end up double parking on the street, block traffic, and it’s a huge issue.”
Weinman outlined the benefits of the project.
“We’d like to invest $1.5 million to $2 million in the County and build a beautiful brand-new store,” continued to Weinman. “If you had an opportunity to see the new store we built in Brookville, that’s exactly what we are looking to build here in Rimersburg.”
‘This is a good opportunity I believe for the County. This will preserve approximately eight to ten existing jobs, and it will actually allow us to employ probably another four people from the Rimersburg area. We will increase the tax base for the County, school district, and township. We see this is a win-win for everybody, and we will be able to provide a much wider range of every day items including larger grocery selection. We think it will be attractive with an all masonry front and landscaping, and the latest storm water systems, so that it’s not running off onto our neighbor’s property or out onto the highway.”
256 Baker Street, LLC
256 Baker Street, LLC, site of the former Archway and Davis Cookie buildings in Rimersburg received preliminary approval for a land development application
“They’re proposing two little additions at the back of the building,” said Clarion County Engineer Kevin Reichard. “One addition is 270 square feet, and the other addition is 108 square feet. This would house additional equipment that they wish to put in the building to make things work a little better and provide more working space for new equipment.”
The additions are going to be placed on the existing asphalt driveway/parking lot area, so there is no increase in runoff water because it is already impervious now and will be remaining the same as the roof area. No new utilities are necessary for the expansion.
In other business:
• A modification application for relief from the minimum 50 ft. right of way width requirement and a single lot subdivision application were approved for Blanche L. McClain in Highland Township. A minor subdivision application was also approved in Washington Township.
• Recommendations for the reappointment of Keith Decker and Eugene Metcalf to the Commission and will be sent to the Clarion County Commissioners.
• The Commission is also seeking a replacement for the commission member vacated when Steve Ketner accepted the assistant planner position. Anyone interested should submit an application that includes a letter of interest, a resume, and support letters to the County Planning Office at the Clarion County Administrative Building on 330 Main Street in Clarion.
• 2016 meeting dates will continue on the third Wednesday of each month at 7 p.m. in the Administrative Building Conference Room.
• Commission members attending included Chairman Keith Decker, Fred Anderson, Hugh Henry, Eugene Metcalf, and Kevin Wilson.
