Published: October 24, 2009 12:12 am      

Em's expansion: Sub business will move into vacant storefront

Submarine sandwiches and fresh-baked bread will provide new life for a vacant building in downtown Johnstown.

Bill Beckner, who owns the Em’s Original Sub Shop business, has purchased a building at 434 Main St. that formerly housed Eckerd drug store.

Beckner plans to move his downtown sub shop to the new location, and he also will consolidate the business’ bread-baking operation there.

“I think, in the long run, it’s going to be beneficial for us and for the customers,” Beckner said.

The purchase results from the evolution of two businesses during the past three years.

Beckner and his wife, Melanie, who live in Richland Township, purchased Em’s in late 2006.

They have worked to expand the business, which now includes three stores in the Johnstown area, one in Ebensburg and one in Somerset.

Meanwhile, the downtown Eckerd store closed in 2007 following the company’s purchase by Camp Hill-based Rite Aid, which has a newer store nearby at Franklin and Main streets.

The two-story structure has been vacant since Eckerd closed its doors.

“I really wasn’t thinking about buying a building downtown,” Beckner said. “I kind of stumbled onto this.”

It turns out that the first floor of the Eckerd building, with about 4,500 square feet of open space, perfectly suits Beckner’s needs.

He plans to move the downtown Em’s – now at 345 Main St. – to the front portion of the newly purchased building. That may happen about a year from now, Beckner said.

The rear section of the first floor will house Em’s growing baking operation. Bread for all three Johnstown stores now is made at the Scalp Avenue restaurant.

“We’re running out of room there,” Beckner said, estimating that Em’s runs through 500 to 600 of its “torpedo” rolls – each 22 inches long – every day in the Johnstown area.

Beckner is hoping to open bakery operations downtown by March. Eventually, bread and baked goods for the Ebensburg and Somerset stores also could be made on Main Street.

First-floor renovations needed at the former Eckerd building include painting, floor replacement and installation of new restrooms.

Beckner said he does not yet have any plans for the second floor.

“It needs a lot of work,” he said. “It’s been empty a long time.”

Beckner’s plans represent another investment on Main Street, which has seen some redevelopment activity over the past few years:

• 1st Summit Bank opened a newly constructed branch office at Main and Bedford streets, the site of the former Swank Building.

• A partnership made up of former City Manager Curt Davis and retired businesswoman Sharyn Spinelli purchased and renovated the Kline-Landers building at 345 Main St. They installed three new loft apartments above first-floor commercial space that currently houses Em’s and Penn Home Medical Supply Co.

• Investar Redevelopment has renovated the former Manpower Inc. office at 407 Main St. The “Bankers Lofts” project created room for a first-floor commercial tenant and four upstairs apartments.

• State Farm insurance agent Donna Christopher is refurbishing the former Burger King restaurant located right beside the Kline-Landers Building.

Still, there is plenty of real estate available in a Central Business District that has been plagued by vacant storefronts.

Next door to the building Beckner purchased, the four-story Central Park Commons building remains on the market at a reduced price of $499,000.