Even though Menards didn’t have the decorative wood paneling Karl Doerk was looking for, he didn’t leave empty-handed.
He settled on railroad toys instead.
Doerk and his wife usually make the drive to the Menards near Morgantown, W.Va., once or twice a month from their home in Cumberland, Md., a little more than an hour away. In his opinion, Menards has a better selection in some respects, and sometimes better quality, than similar big-box home improvement stores, making the trip worth it for them.
“It’s a good deal of variety in the offerings, and the price is good,” he said.
Plus, the frequent 11% rebate on purchases — that comes in the form of a merchandise credit for future in-store visits — is a nice benefit.
“It’s like a little sale every time,” Doerk said.
Southwestern Pennsylvania is still waiting for its first Menards, more than five years after site plans were approved by Hempfield supervisors for a new store to be built near Westmoreland Mall. Municipal officials in Fayette and Washington counties are in a similar boat as it’s been years since new stores were proposed there.
Any of the three would be the Wisconsin-based company’s first foray into Pennsylvania, adding to its existing 300-plus stores in 15 states, primarily in the Midwest. Menards has the third most locations in the U.S. behind fellow home improvement chains Lowe’s and Home Depot. The two closest locations are just over the border into West Virginia, one near Wheeling and the other outside Morgantown.
In Hempfield, a site plan for a new 250,000-square-foot location expired Dec. 31, but township officials said they are continuing negotiations with the company and expect a positive resolution to continue redevelopment. The plan was approved by township supervisors in August 2020 and the state municipal planning code sets a five-year expiration date, though officials said extensions can be granted.
The matter is expected to come before supervisors this month.
“We’ve just been patiently waiting for them to move forward,” said Supervisor Doug Weimer, adding that he didn’t know a reason for the five-year wait. “We’ve been ready to go to help them move into our neighborhood from day one.”
It seems like there’s some light at the end of the tunnel in South Strabane, Washington County, where a site plan was approved in January 2023 for a 200,000-square-foot building and a 40,000-square-foot lumber yard. Interim township manager Jordan Cramer said he learned in a December phone call with Menards officials that they plan to start moving earth this year at the Old Mill shopping plaza along Route 19.
“That was the first that we had heard from them in some time,” he said.
South Union, Fayette County, approved a zoning change in 2020 for Menards to build a proposed 200,000-square-foot store off Matthew Drive, said Supervisor Robert Schiffbauer. He last had contact with someone from the company about a year ago and was assured they were still interested in building, but no timeline was available.
In response to questions from TribLive, a Menards spokesperson said the company has nothing to report at this time.
Home-life mecca
The click-clack of a metal turnstile at the entrance to the spacious store near Morgantown welcomed a steady stream of shoppers on a morning last week. A bright lighting gallery was to the right and laundry and household cleaners to the left.
Then came flooring, window treatments, toilets, faucets, shower heads and sinks. In the back was paint and cabinet hardware. Enormous green signs with white lettering marked each department and details about Menards’ store credit card swayed from the ceiling.
Hang a left toward the custom cabinetry design area and there are several grocery aisles with food, toiletries and a couple of stocked refrigerators and freezers. Beyond that are large and small appliances, pet supplies and food, building materials, paper products, a lumberyard, shelving and a small selection of furniture.
Closer to the front are automotive supplies, toys and outdoors and seasonal merchandise. Upbeat music plays from overhead, interspersed with the company’s jingle — “Save big money at Menards.”
The store is brightly lit with ceilings stretching high. Merchandise is neatly arranged on shelves with eye-catching displays of products for sale, such as full kitchen models.
Dave Ruehl, a retired plumber and electrician, said he likes the specialty hardware section where he often can find something unusual needed for a project, avoiding shipping costs. The store, which opened five years ago, has aisle after aisle stocked with brands that would be familiar to shoppers in Southwestern Pennsylvania, and others that may be new to the region.
“You can spend three hours in here,” said Ruehl, who lives north of Morgantown close to the Pennsylvania border.
Friendly employees were around every corner of the 175,000 square feet of retail space. Workers assist in the checkout lanes and, when the 11% rebate offer is available, shoppers get a form at the bottom of their receipt to mail in.
‘A good niche for them here’
A store built six years ago in Ohio was expected to bring about 100 jobs, according to The Post in Athens, Ohio.
Weimer, the Hempfield supervisor, said he visited a Menards in 2022 while visiting family near Chicago. There were plenty of model displays, such as full kitchen set-ups and playground equipment, for customers to be able to visualize and buy.
“I was impressed,” he said.
That kind of merchandise, plus a small grocery section, he said, would be a good addition to the central part of Westmoreland County, on the opposite end of the township from Home Depot and Lowe’s. Hempfield is seeing a housing boom, plus there are plenty of existing houses that could be well-suited for renovations and do-it-yourself projects, Weimer said.
“I think there’s a good niche for them here,” he said.
And there’s also the potential dollar signs from tax revenue.
Menard Inc. owns four properties on a hill above Route 30 that once housed a Ramada hotel and Westmoreland Athletic Club. All of the buildings have been razed.
The combined assessed value is $319,640, according to county property records, which equals just shy of $40,000 total in property taxes paid to the township, school district and Westmoreland County annually. The assessed value would be updated in the event the property is developed.
As a comparison, the 200,000-square-foot Menards location near Wheeling, W.Va., opened in 2020, has a total appraised value of $20 million, according to West Virginia property records. The location near Morgantown is appraised at $26 million.
Hempfield in 2021 received a $925,000 grant from the state Department of Community and Economic Development for traffic improvements at Sheraton Drive and Donohoe Road, leading to the proposed Menards site. It would add a traffic signal at Sheraton and Donohoe, change traffic patterns through the Best Buy property and add a stop sign for traffic on the ramp coming from Westmoreland Mall.
Menards agreed to contribute $350,000 to that project as the local match, according to information provided to supervisors. That contribution, which the township hadn’t received, is part of the site plan negotiations with the company.
The grant is set to expire June 30. Township manager Aaron Siko said Hempfield will likely have to apply for an extension with the state as the project is estimated to go out to bid in September.
DCED press secretary Justin Backover said the agency considers several factors when weighing extension requests for that type of grant, including the project status, reason for the delay and timeline for completion. If a grant extension is approved, it’s typically for one year.
While it’s been a long wait so far for Hempfield supervisors, Weimer said he’s happy the proposed location was cleared of buildings and is ready for redevelopment.
“We continue to be excited they’re interested in moving to the community,” he said.
