Troutman lot sold; restaurant coming

For several years there has been a void in the downtown Connellsville business district where the Troutman building once stood.

But soon that space will be filled with a family-style restaurant along with parking for the business.

At last week's Connellsville Council meeting, a resolution was passed to accept the bid of $15,000 from Hanna El-Ayazra of Uniontown for the property.

El-Ayazra is currently the owner and operator of Sam's Restaurant on Morgantown Street in Uniontown, which solicitor Joseph Ferens praised highly.

According to Councilwoman Judy Keller, there were some stipulations the city set on the purchase of the property including construction of a structure with a minimum of 2,500 square feet of usable space.

"But we made it clear that we would not accept storage sheds or things like that," said Keller, who added that the entire lot is a little over 10,000 square feet.

"If they use 2,500 square feet for the building, that's approximately one-fourth of the lot, leaving the other three-fourths available for parking," said Keller.

El-Ayazra stated at the meeting that he hoped to construct a two-story building and had no problem meeting the 2,500-square-foot criterion.

Another stipulation was that construction on the project would need to begin within 18 months of the transfer of property, according to Keller.

But El-Ayazra was not worried about that stipulation either. He hopes to begin construction in early spring of this year.

The last stipulation was that the buyer, of course, would have to meet building codes.

"I'm just pleased that we were able to sell the lot," said Keller. "When this man (El-Ayazra) came forward and said he planned to put a two-story restaurant on the property and at the same time create 25 to 30 jobs, that was just a blessing."

El-Ayazra does, in fact, hope to create a number of jobs in the city at the restaurant.

"I've always been interested in having a restaurant in Connellsville," said El-Ayazra. "At one time I had in mind the Riviera Hotel by City Hall, but that didn't happen.

"Every time I went through Connellsville, I saw the empty lot," he continued. "When I found out it was for sale, I put in a bid."

"This new administration wanted to take a more aggressive approach at trying to develop the lot," said Keller. "We wanted to fill the void with a commercial property."

El-Ayazra said that all the plans for the restaurant are not finished because it is still early, and he is not sure if this restaurant will also be a Sam's Restaurant or if it will be called something else.

"He (El-Ayazra) seemed very excited and very genuinely interested and I can't thank him enough," said Keller. "I hope all of this will come to fruition."

El-Ayazra is currently looking to get a liquor license.

"It's not going to be a bar; it will be family-style restaurant, but if someone wants to have a drink with their meal, it will be there," he said.

"Here we're taking a step in the right direction," said Keller. "One of the things Mayor (Judy) Reed addressed in her campaign when she ran for mayor was to revitalize the downtown, so this is something that should be viewed in a very positive way. We're trying to keep our promises."