An agreement in principle has been reached to bring Moeller Brew Barn, a restaurant and brewery, to the clock tower building in Plain City, 101 S. Chillicothe St. The Ohio-based business began with a location in Maria Stein, pictured above, and has restaurants in Troy and Dayton. (Photo submitted)
An Ohio-based restaurant and brewery could make its next location the clock tower building in Plain City.
An agreement in principle has been reached to bring Moeller Brew Barn to the former Tique Tock building, 101 S. Chillicothe St., according to a statement from investors in the project.
Moeller Brew Barn began in Maria Stein and has locations in Troy and Dayton. The Troy restaurant and brewery is in a renovated historic church.
Plain City Mayor Jody Carney said the project aligns with a vision to bring new uses to the village’s historic buildings and attract investment in the Uptown district.
“I see that our Uptown can be a destination not only for our residents but for visitors as well,” Carney said.
Carney said Plain City’s administration was first approached by investors Rayce Robinson and Andy Warnock in fall 2021 regarding a desire to develop the clock tower building on the corner of Main and Chillicothe streets.
Robinson was raised in Plain City and graduated from Jonathan Alder. Warnock leads the Westwood Collective, a development company that created two restaurant spaces in Hilliard.
The pair also purchased the former site of the Plain City Municipal Building, 213 S. Chillicothe St., with the intent to create a co-working “incubator” space for small businesses and start-ups.
Robinson said his love for his hometown inspired him to acquire buildings in Uptown Plain City.
“Change can be both exciting and intimidating,” Robinson wrote in a statement. “The benefit of having a vested interest in the community is that we can help ensure responsible growth and desired changes to our historic Uptown.”
Carney said Plain City administrators were “excited to be asked to be a part of the planning process” leading up to the news that Moeller Brew Barn was interested in coming to the area, which she learned in December 2021.
She said she feels the restaurant and brewery will strike a balance between “appreciating our heritage and modernizing for the future.”
“It’s exciting to work with those who invest their own money in our community,” Carney said. “It takes a lot of money to get historic buildings into code and working condition.”
According to a Community Reinvestment Area (CRA) tax abatement application filed by Robinson and Warnock, they will invest approximately $2,650,000 in the project.
The acquisition of the building cost $900,000, while $1 million will be invested in improvements to the existing buildings. Machinery and equipment will cost $500,000 and furniture and fixtures will be $250,000.
“101 S. Chillicothe St. will be completely overhauled – HVAC, electrical plumbing, light fixtures, bathrooms and (a) commercial kitchen (will be) built out,” according to the application.
The application indicates the second floor of the building will become overflow seating in a banquet space. A biergarten will be added to the exterior.
Carney said the village will maintain ownership of the antique clock itself.
“We will maintain our property on their building as we have done with other property owners,” she explained.
She added that, although the interior of the building will undergo major renovations, any exterior changes must be approved by the village’s Design Review Board and meet the standards for historic buildings.
“We have a process in place to make sure our historic buildings keep their integrity,” Carney said.
Robinson and Warnock estimated that the project will create between 25 and 30 jobs.
The application indicates three to five managerial positions “will be hired upon commencement of construction” in 2022.
“Both full-time and part-time operations staff – kitchen, brewery and restaurant – would be hired within six weeks of (the) restaurant’s opening” in mid-2023, the applicants wrote.
The abatement application states that the new employees’ annual payroll will total $250,000 for full-time workers and $285,000 for part-time employees.
Robinson and Warnock requested a 100% tax exemption for 12 years, according to their CRA abatement application.
CRA abatements are applied specifically to the property taxes of the assessed valuation of the redeveloped structure that will be constructed under the project.
They wrote that private re-investment in the village “is not possible nor practical” without the abatement.
“To allow the development team the ability to invest necessary capital into reviving the properties, tenant them and create jobs and ‘downtown vibrancy,’ tax relief is necessary.
“As the village grows and populations metrics eventually meet the need of real estate opportunity, the tax abatement will expire and the project will be self-sufficient in funding full tax liability in future years,” the applicants wrote.
The Jonathan Alder Board of Education heard the first reading of the CRA abatement agreement Feb. 22 and will vote on the measure in March.
JA Communications Coordinator Monica Leichtenberg said “there shouldn’t be any opposition” to the measure.
If approved by the school board, the abatement agreement will go before Plain City Council for a vote.
Construction is scheduled to start in late 2022 with an opening in mid-2023, according to a joint statement from the Westwood Collective and Moeller Brew Barn.