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Sonic, Hooters may hit town: Developer in talks with both companies(The Dominion Post in Morgantown (WV) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Oct. 31--"America's drive-in" may soon become Morgantown's. An area developer is in negotiations to bring two Sonic drive-ins to Monongalia County. David Biafora, co-owner of RDR Properties, confirmed Thursday afternoon that his company is not only talking to officials with Sonic, but also Hooters and McDonald's. He said no deals have been finalized. If they go through, Biafora said there are plans for one Sonic to be located at RDR's newest development on Pierpont Road and another to be built in Suncrest Towne Centre. He said there are talks under way for a Hooters, as well as a McDonald's to be built in the Suncrest development. Sonic bills itself as "America's Drive-In" and features a menu of burgers and milk shakes brought to your vehicle like the traditional carhop restaurants of the 1950s. It is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. The nearest Sonic to Morgantown is in Uniontown, Pa. Hooters' menu includes a variety of sandwiches, burgers and wings. There are three such restaurants in West Virginia -- in Huntington, Charleston and Beckley. Biafora said RDR is developing an 11-acre site on Pierpont Road, next to the Interstate 68 exit, that will include a hotel, a BB&T bank branch, a shopping center, a car wash and a 36,000-square-foot office building, among other businesses. The car wash and a convenience store are expected to open in the spring, followed by the office building and shopping center in the summer, and the hotel next fall. "We're talking to Sonic," Biafora said. "We've got paperwork." As for Suncrest Towne Centre, along W.Va. 705, Biafora said he is also negotiating for a pizza shop and book store at that site. There are plans for that development to include a WesBanco bank branch and a 20,000-square-foot medical clinic and day spa. The facade of the office building and shopping center being constructed in the lower portion of the site should be completed within six months, Biafora said. Footers are being put in for the Hilton Garden hotel. One of the large buildings above the center that is nearly completed is a United Bank branch. The other is a 42,000-square-foot office building. All but 2,900 square feet has been leased or sold at this point. WVU and Surgical Associates are among the businesses that have purchased or leased space in the building. "Things are really opening up," Biafora said. "For a tough economy, things are really booming." To see more of The Dominion Post or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.dominionpost.com/. Copyright (c) 2008, The Dominion Post, Morgantown, W.Va. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |