Council’s vote allows the city to enter into a demolition grant deal with the property owner at 1301 E. Stroop, City Manager Mark Schwieterman said.
“The demolition grant is very similar — almost identical — to the Wilmington Pike demolition grant program that the city’s had for a number of years,” Schwieterman said.
That grant program is part of the Wilmington Pike improvement plan. Kettering has invested more than $10 million in the past 10 years in that plan, with 95% of funds coming from grants, to make infrastructure improvements to the corridor, according to the city.
The 0.2267-acre site on East Stroop is a small, vacant former Food Mart, owned by Kettering resident Susan Westbeld, who bought the land in 2018, Montgomery County property records show. The vacant property is next to a closed Dragon City Chinese Restaurant on Marshall.
The owner will contract with a demolition business and the city will reimburse half of the cost up to $25,000, Kettering Planning and Development Director Tom Robillard said in an email.
“Once demolition takes place, the property will be much more marketable for redevelopment,” he said. “As this is a very busy, visible and important intersection of the city, a quality redevelopment of the corner will make a lasting impact on redevelopment and reinvestment opportunities in the area.”
In the past several years, the city has discussed “many different commercial and retail uses for the property,” which is zoned commercial, Robillard said. The other three corners of the intersection are occupied by a Speedway gas station, a Rite Aid store and the Stroop-Mar Plaza that is anchored by Grieve Hardware and several other stores.
Demolition of the Food Mart building is expected in the next three months, Robillard said.
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