This preliminary drawing shows an early concept for the new DiCarlo Building to be constructed at 1115 Main St. in downtown Wheeling. Another level to the building is now planned, giving the future structure one basement level floor in the rear along Water Street, one street level retail space on the Main Street side for a new downtown DiCarlo’s Pizza location and another restaurant space, and four upper floors for a total of eight condominium units in the five-story building. (Image Provided)

Members of the Wheeling Planning Commission on Monday night gave site plan approval for the newly proposed DiCarlo Building, which is expected to be constructed on Main Street over the course of the next year.

Toni DiCarlo, owner of popular local hometown pizza chain DiCarlo’s Pizza, appeared before members of the Wheeling Planning Commission on Monday evening along with veteran Pittsburgh-area developer Tom Janidas, who provided a presentation about the proposed project during a site plan review. The project is being proposed by DiCarlo’s company R.J. CAT Corporation of Wheeling and developed by Janidas’ Medco Commercial Management Group Inc. of Mars, Pa.

Although the site at 1115 Main St. is currently an empty lot, plans for a new condominium building to be constructed from the ground up in downtown Wheeling created a buzz around town earlier this year. A veteran restaurateur, DiCarlo said the condo business is a new venture for her.

In February, a number of the housing units planned for the building had already hit the market and had been sold or were listed as “sale pending,” DiCarlo said. Original plans had called for a four-story building, but the project has since grown.

“From the original documents we had, we’re planning on putting an additional two units on the building,” Janidas said.

The new five-story building is expected to have a lower basement level adjacent to a 16-space parking lot in the rear of the structure facing Water Street in a prime location — overlooking the Ohio River and Heritage Port. The first floor will be street-level in the front on the side facing Main Street, where two retail spaces will be created.

On Monday, DiCarlo confirmed that she planned to relocate the downtown Wheeling DiCarlo’s Pizza location there once the new building is completed. The current downtown DiCarlo’s location operates in a rented space one block south of the lot where the new building is planned.

Janidas indicated that the two retail spaces on the street level of the new building will include the downtown DiCarlo’s and another restaurant-style shop.

“The first floor will have two commercial spaces — one will be the pizza shop, and we have somebody actually almost pretty sure they’re going to be moving into the other side,” he said. “So there will be two kinds of restaurants on the first level — the street level. The rest will be residential housing.”

There will be an elevator in the structure, and although the downtown is exempt from the parking space requirement that is imposed in other areas of town, plans for the new building call for several spaces in the rear — including one ADA space.

Janidas said core drilling and other preliminary work at the site has already been completed. He noted that they want to get started on construction as soon as possible, adding that construction is expected to take about a year.

“It’ll be a nice addition to the downtown,” Planning Commissioner Howard Monroe said.

Members of the Planning Commission voted unanimously to approve the site plan for the DiCarlo’s Building.