Sheetz, O'Charley's Plans Moving at Whitney-Pearl

A development company is asking City Council to rezone two parcels at the northeast corner of Pearl and Whitney roads for an  restaurant and a Sheetz gas station.

Both by WXZ Development Inc., which is seeking to develop the vacant land in front of .

At the time, some local residents and one councilman opposed a Sheetz in that location.

WXZ is seeking to rezone one parcel from General Business to Restaurant-Restaurant Services for O'Charley's and the other from General Businss to Motor Services for Sheetz.

The projects have been on hold while legal issues about the foreclosed property went through the courts, but development is now able to move forward.

The rezoning legislation will be on City Council's agenda soon, possibly as early as next Tuesday.

No action would be taken. Rezonings are referred to the Planning Commission for recommendations before council votes.

At a meeting hosted by WXZ in January, residents welcomed O'Charley's to the area.

They were less enthusiastic about Sheetz, which wants to build a service station and food-oriented convenience store, with a car wash in the back, architect David Mastrostefano said.

The owners of the nearby  station and Laser Wash said Sheetz would take their customers.

Ward 4 Councilman Scott Maloney also opposed Sheetz, saying a gas station is "not even remotely" what residents were promised at that corner by the original developer.

As far as O'Charley's, the Nashville, TN-based restaurant chain is seeking to construct a 6,400-square-foot eatery that would seat about 200 on the other side of the access road from .

O'Charley's operates more than 230 restaurants in the United States, including one in . There are also O'Charley's restaurants in Canal Winchester (just outside Columbus), Boardman, Niles and Cincinnati.

Sheetz would go at the corner of Whitney and Pearl.

Last year, Sheetz sought to build on the opposite side of Pearl Road, on the former Quality Catering site, but faced opposition in that location, too.

WXZ took over the long-in-coming development at Pearl and Whitney roads, picking up where the Toledo-based Timberstone development group left off when it ran into financial obstacles and bowed out in 2009.

Timberstone was the second developer to plan and then abandon a project there.

Residents were initially promised a major retail project, to be called Renaissance Park, that would include a grocery store and a mix of other retail and restaurants by original developer David Lewanski, who in late 2005 said he had commitments from Lowe's, Bed Bath & Beyond and Circuit City to locate there.

Lowe's and  have been constructed so far. Circuit City is out of business, and  built a store at the Plaza at SouthPark.

When Lewanski left, Timberstone proposed a multi-phased project that would include smaller retail stores, restaurants and office space. 

Timberstone's other Strongsville project, a Kindercare on an outlot at , was . The property has .