Village Pantry shutters in Old Town Greenwood; ideas sought for site’s future

A convenience store that has been open in downtown Greenwood for nearly half a century has closed its doors.

But the closure opens a path for new small businesses to come to the site, the property owners say.

Village Pantry, 99 N. Madison Ave., closed its doors earlier this month after serving the community for 47 years. The store’s signage is gone, shelves are empty inside and handwritten signs on the windows direct customers to other nearby locations at 520 N. Meridian St. and 899 E. Main St.

The site has been a gas station or convenience store since the 1930s. It was first a Standard Oil Station in the ’30s before Village Pantry came to call the site home in 1977.

For the last 22 years, the property has been owned by Paul and Sarah Lushin through GWOOD LLC, a family-owned business. The decision to close the Village Pantry was not the Lushins, but rather GPM Investments LLC, the company that owns Village Pantry, said Paul Lushin, founder of the Indianapolis-based Lushin Group and co-owner of the property.

The Lushins owned the property, but Village Pantry owned the building and ran the business, Paul Lushin said.

Before the coronavirus pandemic, GPM had decided to move and close the Village Pantry. But when COVID-19 hit in 2020, they decided to stay, Paul Lushin said. He described it as an act of “civic responsibility.”

“They were neither profitable nor losing money,” he said, referring to store’s decision to stay open during the pandemic.

It was about two or three months ago when GPM decided to complete the closure and move out, Paul Lushin said.

While residents may be sad to see the Village Pantry go, the vacancy presents a new opportunity for the site, which was the first commercial building the Lushins ever bought. It also presents an opportunity for two adjacent parcels located immediately to the west. The Lushins also own these properties.

Now the couple is seeking ideas for what can replace it, working with Indianapolis-based DELV Design to come up with concepts.

“We really want to be thoughtful and mindful about what goes in there. We haven’t landed on anything specific,” said Sarah Lushin, Paul’s wife and co-owner of the property. “The whole idea is we want to attract business to downtown Greenwood, that area, again, small businesses.”

The consistent idea so far is for a building that could house multiple tenants. Potential tenants could be law firms, dental offices or restaurants, as examples, Sarah Lushin said.

The Lushins consider the downtown area as a “legacy core,” which requires them to be “very deliberate” in what comes there. What happens with the Village Pantry property would be the first significant development in this area in years, Paul Lushin said.

“It’s important that we blend the fabric of the 1920s or 1930s … and something modern, so the architectural significance is important,” Paul Lushin said. “This is not just to put something there, but [put] something there that actually blends in well with the fabric of that legacy core.”

The future development would blend elements of Old Town and small town feels with new architectural design, Sarah Lushin said. Paul Lushin later added he hopes the future development would bring the “charm of small town America.”

It would also be a product that is attractive, resilient and “enhances the local community,” Sarah Lushin said. They plan to continue to hold onto the property for the long term.

“I think [that] says a lot, as far as, again, the thoughtfulness, the purpose and long-term investment in the community, not just the structure itself,” she said.

Sarah Lushin hopes the community is excited to see what’s to come.

“We want to put something really cool and fun and neat in there,” she said. “We want everybody to be excited about it, not fearful of it.”

Those with ideas on what can come to the property can email Paul Lushin at [email protected] or Sarah Lushin at [email protected].