New pizza restaurant coming to downtown Decatur

Mar. 20—Decatur's business development is beginning to warm up along with the weather, according to city Director of Development Dane Shaw.

Shaw pointed to site plans for a pizza restaurant, a new three-store strip mall and a grocery store approved at Monday's Planning Commission meeting as examples of the increased activity.

"We're starting to see interest rates stabilize," Shaw said. "Some people we were talking to when interest rates were low are starting to come back to the table."

Partners Andrew Freeman, Nick Franks, Mike Alonzo and Randy Alred, as 602 Boys LLC, are moving forward with plans to build a Pie Factory, a 4,000-square-foot, two-story pizza restaurant, on a quarter-acre lot at 602 Bank St. N.E.

The site plan approved by the Planning Commission shows indoor seating with a lounge area and outdoor seating under a covered patio.

"It's going to be an incredible restaurant for downtown," Shaw said. "What they're planning will be pretty cool."

The planned restaurant is in a B-5 (central business district) zone, which City Engineer Courtney Johnson said is a zone that, unlike other business districts, doesn't have a requirement for the number of parking spaces.

She said it's next to a parking lot owned by the Morgan County Commission, so there will be plenty of parking.

Freeman already owns two businesses — Riverside Design and Patrick Jacks-Decatur dumpster rental — on Church Street Northeast in Decatur.

The Pie Factory will become a new neighbor to the Morgan County Archives. A gas station has been on the 602 Bank St. site since as early as 1927. The current building dates from 1956, when it was originally the F.A. Simmons Service Station. Most recently, it was Bank Street Detail.

There are also Pie Factory restaurants in Florence, Muscle Shoals, Jasper and Lawrenceburg, Tennessee.

According to the restaurant website, The Pie Factory features pizzas with a tomato-sauce base, a ranch base, an olive oil base or a barbecue base, as well as wings, dinner salads, calzones, New York cheesecake and S'mores pizza — a dessert of chocolate, almonds, marshmallows and graham crackers. — New location

Zaragoza's Supermarket is planning to relocate in a larger store at 1913 Central Parkway S.W.

The current market is in a busy area adjacent to the Alabama State Troopers office on the east side of Central Parkway. The new market will be on the west side of the road between Attitudes Hair Salon and Cardinal Apartments.

Nathan Tomberlin, vice president of Pugh, Wright, McAnally Inc., which does civil engineering and design, said the new supermarket will be 26,900 square feet, with 108 parking spaces, on 6.79 acres.

Ali Alsamawi is planning a small, three-store development on 5.2 acres at 2612 Old Moulton Road.

The development will be where a car wash once stood at Brookline Drive Southwest and adjacent to the Cowboys convenience store.

Community Development had put the car wash up for possible demolition by the city, but City Council President Jacob Ladner said that the owner had taken care of the demolition so he removed it from Monday's council meeting agenda.

Johnson said they don't know yet what kind of stores Alsamawi is planning to put in his development, so the Engineering Department used the parking space requirement for a convenience store when considering the site plan, which shows 15 parking spots.

Tomberlin said he designed the development "for flex office space."

Williams said the developer will be required to replace the traffic signal detection system at Brookline if it is disturbed during construction. — Annexation

The Planning Commission also voted to recommend the last annexation for the next six months before approving a moratorium on annexations for April 7 through September.

Commission chairman Kent Lawrence said the annexation moratorium is necessary in order to set the election districts for the Aug. 26 municipal election. A runoff, if necessary, would be held Sept. 23, with the new mayor, City Council and school board taking office Nov. 3.

The Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend the annexation of 6.11 acres east of U.S. 31 South and south of Pisgah Road.

Dylan Pate owns 12.4 acres, half of which are already in the city and in a B-2 (general business) zone. The commission approved a B-2 pre-zoning for the 6.11 acres in anticipation of annexation approval by the City Council.

Lawrence said the new zoning only goes into effect if the council approves the annexation.

The Planning Commission approved consolidating four parcels into two on the 12.4-acre site for Pate.

Pate said he chose B-2 zoning "because it's the most flexible business zoning." He said he is planning to build a home for he and his wife on the largest tract. He already has a variance through the city's Board of Zoning Adjustment for the home.

He said he is considering putting small warehouses on the front 4-acre tract.

— bayne.hughes@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2432