ZONING Building projects total $5M

A $2.5 million to $3 million Hummer dealership is planned.
AUSTINTOWN -- The value of construction for which zoning permits have been issued has soared from about $2.9 million in the first quarter of last year to about $5 million in the first quarter of this year, according to the township zoning inspector.
Mike Kurilla, zoning inspector, told trustees Monday the increase is largely attributable to two projects, each involving about $1.4 million in new construction:
UThe St. Elizabeth emergency and diagnostic facility at 6252 Mahoning Ave.
UThe parish center at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church at 4500 Norquest Blvd.
The parish center, to be built next to the church and school, will have a gymnasium, kitchen and conference room.
Ground has been broken for both projects.
Plaza, dealership
Other projects planned, but not included in the $5 million total, are the $3 million Weston Center shopping plaza at state Route 46 and Mahoning Avenue and a new free-standing Home Savings & amp; Loan branch at Austintown Plaza, where Home now occupies a storefront, Kurilla said.
The township board of zoning appeals has already issued a conditional-use permit for a $2.5 million-to-$3 million Hummer dealership on Mahoning Avenue east of and adjacent to Greenwood Chevrolet, Kurilla added.
It will be one of only five Hummer dealerships in the state, he said. The closest Hummer dealerships to the Mahoning Valley are in Cleveland and in Monroeville, Pa., he added. A zoning permit application is expected soon because the developers hope construction can begin by next month and the dealership can open in November or December, he said.
Concerts in park
Mike Bertilacci, park superintendent, told trustees a series of concerts is planned at the Austintown Park band shell at 7 p.m. every Tuesday from June 8 to Aug. 24.
Trustees voted to advertise for bids for 10 sets of self-contained breathing apparatus with an oxygen bottle and mask, 14 additional 30-minute bottles, 11 additional masks, and 10 voice amplification devices, all for the fire department. The purchase will be funded by a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and bids will be opened May 10.