For children in Wheeling during the 1970s and ‘80s, the corner market was a haven for penny candy that actually cost a single cent.
Those red fish. The tiny Tootsie Rolls. There were butterscotches, those Smarties Candy rolls, and who didn’t blow an entire nickel to see if five pieces of Bazooka bubble gum would fit in their mouths?
It was A&J Corner Market at 75 Indiana St. on Wheeling Island, a business that lasted long after inflation killed the penny piece of candy but one that has been closed for a few years now. A partnership between Alex Coogan and Dolph Santorine and their businesses purchased the property, and the goal is to return a small grocery store to the Island’s north end.
“Everyone I’ve talked to about this project has mentioned the penny candy,” said Coogan, also the owner of Coogan’s Reliable Appliances and Home Services. “But there’s not a lot of candy out there that can be sold for a penny anymore except, maybe, those little Tootsie Rolls. But who knows? I’m definitely going to look into it after hearing from so many people about A&J’s being the best place for penny candy.”
Time It Will Take
While he did discover some vintage appliances utilized while the corner store was still operational, Coogan trashed tons of debris left behind in the showroom and throughout the basement.
“We have filled dumpsters,” Coogan reported. “Several dumpsters.
There are two, one-bedroom apartments on the second floor, and those will be for rent through Monoceros Properties once the first floor is completely renovated.
“We are looking at six months to a year before we’ll be able to open the store, but we already have the permitting to do everything that’s going to be necessary,” Coogan explained. “One thing I have become known for when it comes to projects like this one is that ‘good enough’ isn’t good enough. It must be done the right way so we can offer what these residents deserve.
“We’ve started looking at floorplans for the first floor so we can maximize the space,” he said. “People are going to refer to it as a convenient store, but I’d rather it be a small grocery that has some other sections to it. It’s all about what the residents of Wheeling Island need, and if we can offer a selection of penny candy, then that’s what we’re going to do.”
That includes areas where essential items will be, like motor oil, cans of Fix-a-Flat, a selection of popular tools. Coogan is, after all, the former manager of the True Value hardware store on Washington Avenue.
“There’s going to be more than groceries, though, because the residents of the Island need more than a place to buy a gallon of milk or a piece of penny candy sometimes,” Coogan said. “The Convenient Mart was set up like that until it was sold and became offices. They were pretty well set up, and they even sold paint brushes and tire gages.
“We’ll sell cigarettes, lottery tickets, beer, and produce,” he explained. “There will be milk, bread, a deli, and whatever else the residents of the Island will support. I want to be able to cut fresh steaks for the customers and other meats like that, too. And we’ll have the ground beef for burgers, and several different kinds of lunch meats, but there have to be those other items, too.”
What’s in a Name?
The A&J Corner Market is surrounded by residents living in apartments and houses along Indiana and North Huron streets, and the location is a short walk from the playground and ballfields at Bridge Park. With more than 2,500 residents currently living on Wheeling Island, a captive audience is a few steps away.
But what about the store’s name? Wheeling residents who reside on and off the Island know it only as “A&J’s,” and name recognition makes a positive difference when it comes to driving commerce. Coogan, of course, is aware of that fact, but he remains uncertain right now how the market will be branded.
“I want to preserve the sign that is out front along the street, but I can’t honestly tell you what the name of the store will be able to be because the Secretary of State’s Office might tell us we’re not allowed to use A&J Corner Market. They may say someone else has that name somewhere. That’s happened to me before, so I can’t commit on the name just yet. I would like for it to remain A&J Corner Market because that’s what the Island knows.
“But the building is going to need a lot of work, though, before anything opens, so we have some time to figure out those things,” he said. “The apartments on the second floor are completely up-to-date, and they will be rented again, but the first floor will be entirely rewired. I can say something positive about the city because after they informed me that it had to be rewired, they agreed to allow me to turn on the old service during the remodel, and then they will approve the new wiring before we open at that location.”
Supply and Demand
Coogan manages 150 rental units throughout the city of Wheeling, and he also owns some of his own, too. Along with his Reliable businesses, he is a partner in Eden Family Restaurant. Coogan arrived in Wheeling to attend Wheeling Jesuit University, now Wheeling University, but he is a native of the state of Maryland.
Once upon a time ago, not only was the there a Convenient Food Mart on South Heron Street, but a full-service Foodland operated along North Front Street for many years. Coogan and his family, though, moved to Wheeling Island only after the chain grocery store closed in the mid-1990s.
“The people on Wheeling Island have been underserved for a lot of years, and I love my Island,” Coogan said. “If you live on the Island and you don’t have a car, you’re on foot, and the accessibility to food is minimal. Sure, there’s Eden Family Restaurant at 135 Virginia St. and some other restaurants, but there’s no place to buy groceries. It might not technically be a food desert, but it certainly is when it comes to buying the ingredients to make meals at home.
“What I want for this store is the same feel you get when you walk into Neely’s in East Wheeling, and part of that is that the staff comes to know everyone’s name,” he said. “This is a joint venture between me and Dolph Santorine and our companies, and because we do a lot of affordable housing on Wheeling Island, we know there’s a real need for a store like what we have planned.”
