Why Pineapple Eddie Southern Bistro has put its relocation plans on hold

This article is part of a recurring series that updates the status of properties of interest in the Erie area. Have a suggestion? Email jmartin@timesnews.com.

The owners of Pineapple Eddie Southern Bistro haven't given up on their plans to move into the former Pie in the Sky restaurant building at 461 W. Eighth St.

But those plans are on hold — at least for now.

Sisters Adrienne Paul and Karen Thomas, who are partners in the restaurant and owners of Pineapple Real Estate LLC, purchased the shuttered restaurant building in October of 2022.

They paid $395,000 for the two-story building, funded by two separate mortgages, one from ErieBank for $177,500 and a second, also for $177,500, from the Enterprise Development Fund of Erie County, a division of the Erie County Redevelopment Authority.

Their plan, shared at the time of the purchase, was to move sometime during 2023 from rented space at 1402 W. 10th St. into the building on West Eighth Street.

More: Erie's Pineapple Eddie plans to move to the former location of another popular restaurant

Grant fell through

That plan was dependent, however, on a grant from Diverse Erie, formerly known as the Erie County Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Commission.

"They submitted an application for the Generational Impact Grant," said Gary Lee, chief administrative officer for Diverse Erie.

While those grants can range from $100,000 to $500,000, Pineapple Eddie asked for $500,000 to cover the cost of extensive renovations, co-owner Karen Thomas said.

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But Pineapple Eddie did not win the grant that owners were seeking.

Lee said 19 applications were submitted, seeking a total of $6.4 million, in the first round of a competitive grant process.

During the second round, in which Pineapple Eddie applied, requests were made for a total of $4.6 million.

Ultimately, Lee said, $1.4 million in grants were awarded between the two funding rounds.

"Nothing was guaranteed," Lee said. "They (Pineapple Eddie) went through the process. It's a competitive process and they did not receive funding."

Lee said that the loan Pineapple Eddie received from the Redevelopment Authority was funded by Diverse Erie's business diversity loan funds.

'We checked all the boxes'

Thomas, who admits to being disappointed by the funding decision, said she would not apply again.

"We checked all the boxes for that project," she said. "But I was told we did not meet their criteria. I don't see any reason to waste my time."

So, where does that leave Pineapple Eddie and its plans to relocate?

"We are biding our time," Thomas said. "We are working in the space that we are in right now. We are OK with where we are at."

But Thomas said she and her sister haven't set aside plans for moving into a space that could be configured to meet their needs.

"There might be other things (in) the neighborhood that might benefit from our presence," Thomas said, without elaborating. "We haven't given up. We have applied for other things. We are just trying to wait and see what happens."

Contact Jim Martin at jmartin@timesnews.com.

This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie's Pineapple Eddie has sought other funding to pay for move