(Posted May 25, 2016)
By Kristy Zurbrick, Madison Editor
A Dublin, Ohio-based developer is interested in building a strip mall on Lafayette Street in London.
Jerry Lee of JVL Retail Properties is in negotiations with the Madison County commissioners to purchase a 2.08-acre site in the grass lot next to Rich Oil and in front of Tractor Supply Co.
Commissioner Paul Gross said negotiations are taking place in executive session, so he cannot share details at this time. He said he does not know the names of any of the businesses that might go in the mall.
“But I do know he has a national tenant and some local folks he’s working with,” Gross said.
Site plans submitted to the city show a proposed 17,290 square-foot facility with seven storefronts. Three of the units are 1,200 square feet, two are 1,845 square feet, and two are 5,000 square feet. The plan also calls for 110 parking spaces, most located in front of the building. The plan shows a drive-through on the side of the unit at the north end of the facility.
“We have been told that four of the storefronts are already confirmed with new businesses,” said London Mayor Patrick Closser.
If the project goes through and all plans are approved, construction is slated to start in August, he added.
The proposed name for the strip mall is Shoppes at Keny. The address would be 280 Lafayette St. JVL applied for and received variances allowing for signage 25 percent larger than the city standard for the sign in front of the building and for the individual business signs on the building.
JVL is working with BDT Architects and Interior Designers out of Athens, Ohio.
“This, along with the sale of the old Stingers building and the South Main Street properties selling, is exciting news for the city of London,” Closser said.
In addition to the strip mall property, the county has three other properties on the market. Two are on Lafayette Street and the third is on Keny Boulevard.
“There’s considerable interest in them because, aside from the lots in front of Walmart, they are really some of the last prime retail sites in the city,” Gross said.
