New commercial development site proposed near the Dorr Street/I-475 Interchange
Posted By: Toledo Blade on May 22, 2023. For more information, please click here to read the source article.
With Dorr Street ripe for commercial development thanks to the new I-475 interchange, a new retail site proposal moving through the approval process looks to capitalize on increased traffic along that corridor.
The proposed development, Dorr Street Station, is a nearly 22-acre parcel located in the northeast corner of the interchange, which could be developed into new retail stores by way of strip shops and other commercial property, George Oravecz, the project’s engineer, said Monday.
The Lucas County Plan Commission is set to vote Wednesday on the preliminary plat drawing for the proposed site.
“Obviously the location of the interchange changed the dynamics of that whole area,” Mr. Oravecz said. “That interchange is advantageous when it serves a growing population that’s occurring in Springfield Township. And it will cause reinvestment in the homes that are in that particular area in the city of Toledo.”
The proposed site is surrounded by single family residential and multi-family apartments and once plat plans are approved by the commission, the property will be marketed to a potential buyer for the purpose of establishing a commercial business.
The property is located in both Springfield Township and the city of Toledo and site plans would go through the approval process with the appropriate jurisdiction, he said. A zoning change from residential to commercial was previously approved by both jurisdictions, he added.
The property, which was formerly occupied by Dennis Top Soil & Landscaping, once housed the company’s retail spaces, offices, and several maintenance buildings, all of which were removed with construction of the interchange, Mr. Oravecz said. Lois M. Reau, the property’s successor trustee, is named as the project’s applicant.
The interchange has made the area more appealing to commercial developers, said Mike Pniewski, Lucas County Engineer.
“I think there is definite interest in that corner in terms of being a good location for commercial [and] light industrial office,” Mr. Pniewski said. “I think you’ll see some stuff on the southwest portion in the coming months or year.”
Eventually commercial development will also take place in the northwest corner, he added.
In 2018, the Springfield Crossing North development was proposed in the northwest corner as a project that would include two hotels as its centerpiece, along with three restaurants, a senior-housing facility, and other commercial buildings.
Kott Enterprises, the company co-owned by brothers Michael and Greg Kott, were behind the project and had even agreed to pick up an approximately $5.7 million share of the interchange’s overall costs when the project was announced in 2018.
That proposal has not advanced, according to Mr. Oravecz, because Michael Kott has not yet relocated his mulch business. Once he sells the material, the property would be ready for development but for now there are no imminent plans for development in the northwest quadrant, Mr. Oravecz said.
“I don’t see businesses coming and operating because he [Michael Kott] still has a considerable amount of material to move,” Mr. Oravecz said.
In February, there was discussion that Mr. Kott’s mulch business might relocate to 59 acres of property he owns on Angola Road near Byrne Road but there are no intentions to move business to that site, Mr. Oravecz said.
“He’s [Michael Kott] got people of interest I believe in retail uses on that site and that is the direction that he is heading,” Mr. Oravecz said.
The Lucas County Plan Commission will hold a public hearing on several matters including the proposed Dorr Street Station at 9 a.m. Wednesday in council chambers at One Government Center.
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