By John Kiesewetter
The Cincinnati Enquirer

WEST CHESTER TWP. - The Streets of West Chester retail complex will triple in size when a second phase is completed next year south of Barnes & Noble bookstore and Mitchell's Fish Market restaurant.

Construction will begin in August on a 250,000-square-foot addition to the retail and restaurant center at Union Centre Boulevard and Interstate 75, said David Kass, president of Columbus-based Continental Retail Development.

The new stores will be split into two facing buildings, with a 1-acre town-square-like park in the middle, he said.

"It's going to be huge. This is just the tip of the iceberg," said Pam Shrout, a former Kenwood Towne Center manager hired as Streets of West Chester property manager in October.

At a ribbon-cutting for the $100 million complex Friday, Kass announced that Panera Bread and a Smokey Bones barbeque restaurant will open this summer near Champps and Red Robin restaurants along Civic Centre Boulevard. Four more restaurants could be located along Union Centre Boulevard, he said.

Office buildings are planned on the southern edge of the property, after Civic Centre Boulevard is extended to Allen Road, Kass said.

Across a creek to the east, 300 town homes and condominiums are planned in an urban-style development to be called The Village at the Streets. The residences will be linked by pedestrian bridges to the stores and the Rave Motion Pictures movie theaters.

The 18-screen Rave, which opened last summer, is the second-highest-grossing theater in Greater Cincinnati, Kass said.

Taste today

The Streets of West Chester celebrates its grand opening with A Taste of West Chester noon to 4 p.m. today. Mitchell's Fish Market, PF Changs, Bravo Cucina Italiano, Champps, Red Robin and Coldstone Creamery will offer portions for $1, with proceeds benefiting the West Chester Community Foundation. Clowns, jugglers and musicians will perform.