Senior housing, cottages, retail approved for Blazier Drive site in McCandless

McCandless council has approved plans to replace two vacant buildings along Blazier Drive with a mixed-use development made up of a personal care home, duplexes and a retail center.

The project, dubbed McCandless Square, will be built on the 23-acre site of the former Trader Horn department store and Bally’s fitness center, which is where Walmart proposed building a supercenter several years ago. The site has been mostly vacant since 2014.

Council at its Sept. 24 meeting approved the preliminary and final subdivision plans, which consolidate a series of parcels on the site and then divides them into three separate areas that will be developed.

Also approved were the preliminary and final land development plans showing where buildings, roads and other infrastructure will be located on the property.

Columbus, Ohio-based Continental Real Estate wants to build a three-story building that will be used for the 108-bed personal care home. There also will be 13, single-story, two-family cottage-style homes.

Continental is the developer of the mixed-use Waterfront project in Homestead and recently completed the Middleton senior living center in Moon Township.

The retail portion of the development is being handled by Selma, N.C., based AdVenture Development, which built the McCandless Crossing shopping center.

The project will include a public green as well as a crushed limestone walking trail along Pine Creek that is accessible from sidewalks along Blazier Drive.

Both the public green and trail will be open to residents who live outside the development.

Mike Hudak, a representative from Continental, told council at its committee meeting that there will be a focus on creating areas for socialization both in and around its new facilities.

He said the facility’s management will be responsible for coordinating activities and bringing in guests to visit with residents to “bring people out of their residences and socialize with others, which is an important function of these facilities.”

Councilwoman Joan Powers supported the developer’s efforts to create ways for residents to mingle with other people in the community.

“I like the idea of other citizens being able to meet up with people living there,” Powers said during a presentation at council’s Sept. 3 committee meeting.