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New owner says local shops and services have made Colony Plaza a destination for 7 decades

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New owner says local shops and services have made Colony Plaza a destination for 7 decades

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The new owner of the Colony Plaza looks forward to more decades showcasing local business.

The plaza has been in business on West Eighth Street near Peninsula Drive since 1953. And in an era of brick-and-mortar chain store closings, it continues to thrive because of its emphasis on local shops, restaurants and services, said Phillip Gesue, owner of Colony Plaza LLC and its parent company, New York-based PE Real Estate Holdings.

“It had owners who ran it and really cared about doing the right thing there,” Gesue said. “The Riehl family hand-curated the shops there and made sure that they were local and had cohesiveness so that each of the individual shops contributed something to the whole.”

Gesue bought the plaza for just over $5 million in August from the Riehl family, which built the plaza and operated it for more than 70 years. Gesue has his own history with the plaza. He grew up in Millcreek’s nearby Glenruadh neighborhood.

‘Fond and positive memories of the plaza’

“I grew up just west of the plaza and spent a lot of time with grandparents and aunts and uncles who also lived in the neighborhood,” Gesue said. “I’ve been there or past it thousands and thousands of times and always had fond and positive memories of the plaza.

“When I was a kid, the Colony Plaza was a place where a lot of people did lunch and shopped. It has been a sort of upscale shopping center for as long as I can remember. And it has kept that same stature through 50-plus years,” Gesue said.

The plaza is a “local gem,” Gesue said.

Gesue said that he believes the plaza will continue to thrive as Millcreek revitalizes its Presque Isle gateway district along West Eighth Street and Peninsula Drive near the entrance to Presque Isle State Park.

“Millcreek has some very big, very exciting plans for West Eighth Street in front of the plaza and all the way to the entrance to the peninsula,” Gesue said. “It should create interesting opportunities for the plaza to capitalize on.”

Millcreek Township plans to encourage mixed residential and commercial development for a walkable, village-type feel in the area.

What changes are coming to the Colony Plaza?

At the Colony Plaza, there will be cosmetic and parking improvements but no major changes, Gesue said.

“It’s one of those situations where, if it’s not broken, don’t fix it. The plaza is functioning really well and is 100% occupied,” with some 30 tenants, including a new tenant that will be announced later this year, Gesue said.

“We do have some plans that are not final yet to re-do the entrance and exits, re-do the landscaping along West Eighth Street and reconfigure parking so that we can add more spaces. We have cosmetic and site plans to enable the plaza to interact with West Eighth Street improvements in a big way.”

Millcreek Township recently approved plaza plans to provide approximately 60 additional parking spaces behind the plaza.

Gesue’s father, David Gesue of Erie, is a principal of Colony Plaza LLC. Deonna Caputo is the plaza’s general manager.

Millcreek’s Colony Plaza: There’s a new owner and plan to expand employee, customer parking

Contact Valerie Myers at vmyers@timesnews.com.

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