Pho Viet and Mission Street Antiques to be demolished and replaced with business space, housing
Local developers will soon replace two iconic Mission Street buildings with new townhomes and business space.
Labelle Limited Partnership plans to demolish the Pho Viet restaurant and the Mission Street antique store by the end of this year, said Jacob Kain, Mount Pleasant city planner. Labelle will then build two new properties at 1718-1722 S. Mission St. in spring 2016.
Brandon Labelle of Labelle Properties LLC presented the project to Mount Pleasant’s Planning Commission at its Oct. 1 meeting. Commissioners unanimously granted Labelle with a special use permit after a public hearing.
A single three-story commercial building will house four new businesses, one with drive through restaurant access; a second two-and-a-half-story building will contain seven new townhomes. Two will be dedicated to family housing.
Kain was also unsure if Pho Viet or the antique shop would go out of business, as both businesses still have the opportunity to relocate. At present, Labelle is working with at least one new business tenant -- neither were Pho Viet or the antique store.
Both buildings are a part of the city’s Mission Redevelopment Overlay Zone –- an area that allows the city to relax traditional zoning rules if a developer builds stylistic properties on Mission Street.
Part of the deal requires Labelle to construct a connector street from Mission Street to East Campus Drive. The city's Downtown Development Authority agreed it would use tax funding to help support road construction.
Planning Commissioners and Kain hailed the project as exciting and true reflection of overlay zone goals.
"This has the potential to be our best mixed-use project in the Mission overlay district thus far," Kain said.
Planning Commission chair Keith Cotter agreed, saying the project plan looks better than he expected.
Kain said Labelle has yet to award contract bids for any aspect of the project. How much site or road will affect student traffic is unknown.
