HEARD ON THE STREET Petretta Construction remains one of the busiest builders in the area with a pair of condo projects on the go as well as a hotel on Amy Croft Drive and three restaurants on an adjoining property. One of the condos is located on Old Tecumseh Road in Russell Woods alongside Pike Creek. The fivestorey Harbour Club condominium community will have underground parking and feature 64 units ranging in price from $600,000 to over $2 million. The first-floor suites will have 12-foot ceilings, on the second through fourth floors, the ceilings will be nine-feet high and the fifth floor will have 10-foot ceilings. All will have views of either a canal on the north side or Pike Creek on the south and east sides. The building also includes a fitness facility and party room. In LaSalle, at the corner of Huron Church Line Road and Sandwich Parkway West, Petretta is planning another five-floor condo, again with 64 units but ranging in price from the low $300,000s to the low $400,000s. The condos will have one or two bedrooms or two-bedrooms plus a den and range from 900 square feet to over 1,200 square feet. Chef Ted Dimoglu has closed Tiki Sushi on Erie Street and is concentrating all his efforts on growing his business out of its new location at Mercato Fresh at 725 Grand Avenue West in Chatham. Dimoglu explained the decision on the restaurant’s Facebook page. “As you may well know, I’ve been burning the candle at both ends these last couple of weeks with the opening of Mercato Fresh,” says Dimoglu. “It’s become increasingly clear that a decision had to be made for the sake of my family, sanity and health.” Dimoglu adds that closing his Erie Street location at the end of February was not a decision he took lightly and he thanked his customers for their support. Meanwhile, business has exploded at the market and Dimoglu says he sold more sushi in his first 10 days than he did in 10 weeks on Erie Street. He plans to expand his business with more locations and may return to Windsor one day.
Mercato Fresh, which sells fresh produce, fruit, meat and baked goods, is owned by Mark Romualdi, who also owns M.R. Meats and Chophaus Meats & Deli, and Jonathan Reaume, who owns the Toscana BreakfastLunch-Cafe, all in Windsor. Romualdi plans to open Mercato Fresh locations in Windsor and LaSalle within the next couple of years. For more info, visit these websites: MercatoFresh.com, ChophausMeats.ca or ToscanaWindsor.com. A new Indian restaurant opened April 8 in the former Webb’s Steak Seafood Burgers and Bar and before that, The RyeGate at 1640 Lesperance Road at the intersection with E.C. Row Expressway. Owners of India ’47 Restaurant and Bar couldn’t be reached for comment before press time, but on the restaurant’s Facebook page, it indicated the restaurant would be serving “authentic Indian cuisine curated with only the freshest and highest quality ingredients.” The ’47 reference in the restaurant’s name likely refers to the Partition of India of 1947 which marked the division of British India into two independent dominion states, the Union of India and the Dominion of Pakistan. Windsor entrepreneur Vern Myslichuk still hopes to find a solution to city zoning issues so he can open the Low-Martin House (which he purchased in 2012) to occasionally host public gatherings such as fundraisers, weddings and other events. “The problem is the house doesn’t fit into any zoning category that would allow for occasional use,” states Myslichuk. “I don’t want a complete zoning change otherwise I couldn’t live there and that’s not my intention.” Myslichuk says he assumes owners of other houses, even in surrounding communities are facing similar issues and he’s hoping for some feedback so he can show the spectacular home to anyone who wants to see it. At a recent court hearing, a bylaw charge of operating a public house in
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contravention of zoning bylaws was dismissed. “Right now it’s in limbo and that’s not where I want it to be,” he adds. The 4,800 square foot home at 2021 Ontario Street, was once home to Paul Martin Sr. and his family. Myslichuk also owns Better Made Cabinets (3275 Odessa Drive, Tecumseh); Bacchus Ristorante (614 Erie Street East); Verna-Q-Lar Cocktail Lounge (614 Erie Street East) and the Shred Shop Wellness Complex (815 Erie Street East), a fitness and wellness centre. For more information, visit: LowMartinMansion.com or ShredShop.ca. Thomson Baking Company (website: ThomsonBakingCompany.com), a successful Windsor bakery, is in the middle of renovating new premises at 1398 Ottawa Street. “There’s a lot work of work to be done to get it ready,” admits Suzanne Thomson who owns the bakery along with husband Jay. “We’re not entirely sure yet whether we will open it as a second location, or simply move.” Their current bakery, which opened in 2015, is located at 1030 Walker Road. The Thomsons began baking, keto-friendly, gluten-free, vegan and regular baked goods out of their home in 2002, before making the leap to a bricks-and-mortar building 13 years later. There is no date set yet for the opening on Ottawa Street. Rumours that Yum! Brands (Yum.com), a global restaurant business, is shuffling its Windsor deck appear to be just that for the moment — rumours. Facing stiff competition from the likes of Mary Brown's Chicken & Taters and Popeyes, a few Biz X readers asked us to investigate if two KFC restaurants in Windsor are closing, while a new one may surface in Forest Glade or the Fontainebleau area. Or maybe the potential closures of certain locations with an older facade are just moves to a new spot with a modern look? Yum!, based in Louisville Kentucky, owns Kentucky Fried Chicken, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell franchises. There are currently eight KFC, five Taco Bell and three Pizza Hut franchises in the Windsor Essex area. Yum! owns 50,000 restaurants in 150 countries. Company representatives couldn’t be reached for comment before press time, but we are not reading anything in to this as most likely they were dealing with important COVID-19 issues. We’ll just have to try again later!
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