Development still in the works at Grant and Grand, officials say

A development at a key intersection of the Grant Avenue Parkway is still underway, officials involved with the project say, though the site has sat largely untouched since receiving rezoning approval from Springfield City Council three years ago.

Those involved with the project at the southwest corner of Grant Avenue and Grand Street confirmed development work remains in progress, but they were largely mum on details in response to queries from Springfield Business Journal. Developer GDL Enterprises LLC originally pointed to plans for a coffee shop, bar and recreational venue called Loose Goose in what was cited as the first commercial development application in the Grant Avenue Parkway district, and council gave the green light in August 2022 to a rezoning of nearly 1.5 acres at 1015 S. Grant Ave. and 1012, 1020 and 1024 S. Douglas Ave. to planned development from the Grant Avenue Parkway District, a zoning status custom-designed to establish parameters for the parkway project.

Greene County assessor and recorder filings show the site changed hands in December 2024 to Tribecca Park LLC from GDL Enterprises. A building permit is not currently on file with the city for the project.

When reached by SBJ on Aug. 29, Andrew Doolittle, co-owner of GDL Enterprises with Willie Grega and Cameron LaBarr, said they still own the acreage at the Grant and Grand intersection. Doolittle declined to say if Loose Goose is still an active development or is now part of Tribecca, but he confirmed that he, Grega and LaBarr are part of Tribecca.

“For now, I’d prefer to not comment and say we’re working on it,” he said of plans for the property. “It’s a larger project that is still undefined.”

Brian Hayes, a local businessman who is listed as the organizer of Tribecca Park in Missouri Secretary of State records, said by email that he did not have a comment on the Tribecca plans, though he did go on to confirm that something is cooking on the corner.

“The project is in the early planning stages and still subject to many changes,” he said. “We are excited to be in that neighborhood and will have a full announcement once we are completed with our plans.”

While not providing any specifics about the development, Doolittle did confirm that local business owners Josh Widner and Michelle Billionis are part of the project. Both Widner and Billionis were previously tied to the Loose Goose development.

Billionis told SBJ on Aug. 29 she had no new information about the project and referred questions to Doolittle.

Widner co-owns Good Spirits Concepts LLC, through which he’s involved in multiple food and beverage concepts, including The Golden Girl Rum Club and Best of Luck Beer Hall. Billionis is owner of The Coffee Ethic LLC and co-owns Cherry Picker Package and Fare with Widner.

Justin Crighton, assistant director of the city of Springfield's Department of Planning and Development, said the municipality has not received recent plans related to the Grant and Grand site from Tribecca or GDL Enterprises.

"The first step in the city’s process would be for the developer to apply for a predevelopment meeting, and as of [Sept. 2.], the city has not yet received said application," Crighton said in an email.

Crighton noted a predevelopment review meeting does not represent a final set of plans or the submission of a building permit, but rather it's an initial discussion between a developer and city staff to identify any potential hurdles. He said that while developers involved with the Grant and Grand project had a predevelopment review when it went through city proceedings in 2022, the municipality anticipates the scheduling of a new predevelopment meeting before any formal applications are made.

When GDL Enterprises received rezoning approval for the site from council in 2022, the Loose Goose plans called for a coffee shop with indoor seating and drive-thru, a food truck parking area with outdoor canopy-covered seating, green space for yard games, pickleball courts and an outdoor walk-up bar, according to past SBJ reporting.

At the time, former Springfield Planning and Development Director Susan Istenes told council that the rezoning request was inconsistent with the recommendations of the Grant Avenue Parkway corridor plan and the Grant Avenue Parkway District. The plan and district support a compact, mixed-use development. The Planning and Zoning Commission and the West Central Neighborhood Alliance approved of the project at the time.

In speaking before council in August 2022, Doolittle said the Grant and Grand development could "be a catalyst site for future development similar to the way that Cherry and Pickwick developed," referring to the Rountree neighborhood.

“It started out with food and beverage industries and businesses and then density followed. We feel like the Grant Avenue Parkway can build out in the same fashion," Doolittle said at the time.