City of Kettering officials said they have taken several inquiries from business owners interested in the property during the past several years, but no re-use has occurred.
Kettering “welcomes the opportunity to work with anyone who would like to develop the site,” city Economic Development Manager Amy Schrimpf said in an email.
Credit: JEREMY KELLEY/STAFF
Credit: JEREMY KELLEY/STAFF
Several attempts by this news organization to reach the owner or an agent of the property for comment have been unsuccessful. The land is owned by CS&H Holdings LLC of Hendersonville, N.C., according to Montgomery County real estate records.
The city of Kettering “has never spoken to the responsible parties for this property,” according to city spokeswoman Mary Azbill.
The 1760 E. Stroop property has been cited for 22 code violations since 2015, the city said. Those include 19 for weeds and three for building/site violations, according to Kettering Planning and Development Director Tom Robillard.
“All notices were served through the full method of service,” Azbill said in an email. “The county still shows the LLC as the responsible party today, so that is the process we follow.”
Full method of service includes sending a notice by certified mail “to the last known address of owner or responsible party,” Azbill said. If that fails, the notice is sent via regular mail and a posting is made “in a conspicuous place at the violation location,” she added.
The building has 9,027 square feet, according to real estate websites, and could seat 300 customers, according to past Dayton Daily News stories. Despite being vacant for seven years, it shows only minor damage from vandalism. The site has a large asphalt parking lot with nearly 150 spaces, but in the past month it mostly served as a “sign farm” for political candidates.
Ryan’s Steakhouse closed there in 2007 and the building was vacant for four years until The Hibachi Grill & Buffet opened in August 2011. But that closed at the end of 2014, according to Dayton Daily News archives.
An area restaurant operator was the most recent business owner to inquire about the location, the city said. That person declined to comment for this report.
Since March 2021, the area around the land has seen more than $28 million in business and residential growth. Neighboring Cassano’s Pizza King began work to expand its headquarters as part of $4 million project, while Kettering Health built a $5.6 million medical office building across the street.
Two apartment buildings combining for 90 units represent a nearly $20 million investment on separate properties next to the post office and Meijer, state records show. Just prior to those developments, a new Dayton Metro Library branch was built at the corner of Wilmington and Stroop, and multiple new restaurants opened.
The listed owner of the former Ryan’s property, CS&H Holdings LLC, formed in 2000 and listed a High Point, N.C. address, according to the North Carolina Secretary of State’s Office.
A phone number listed for CS&H Holdings LLC at that address is not functioning. Messages left at a phone number listed on a sign at the Kettering property were not returned.
CS&H Holdings has been “administratively dissolved” by the North Carolina secretary of state’s office for failing to file annual reports after 2003, said Mary Warren, an administrative specialist with that office.
That action in 2009 was taken “because we don’t have any authority to dissolve a company,” Warren said.
A business with that status “is not compliance with the requirements of the secretary of state and it’s not in good standing,” she said. “(A) company is either in good standing or not in good standing.”
CS&H Holdings LLC is listed as having bought the East Stroop site in 2017 from SBC Investments LLC for an unlisted price, county land records state.
SBC bought the parcel in 2008 from Fire Mountain Restaurants for $550,000, according to county documents. Fire Mountain Restaurants was associated with the Ryan Restaurant Group, Security and Exchange Commission records indicate.
Vacant properties
This story is part of the Dayton Daily News’ ongoing effort to update readers on the status of long-vacant properties or stalled developments in their communities.
About the Author
