BUFFALO TWP — The township man poised to buy the South Pike Square shopping center plans to construct new buildings at the Route 356 site.

Eric Smith said in an interview he will build on vacant land at the nearly 20-acre site, which includes a Giant Eagle GetGo convenience store.

He also is focusing on filling the empty units in the strip mall.

"I'm trying to market it differently," Smith said.

Current owner Nick Mulone will keep the South Pike Cinemas movie theater that was part of the original 28.4-acre development.

Smith said bad economic conditions affected Mulone's chances to fill the mall with businesses in recent years.

"The economy worked against him," Smith said.

Smith already owns commercial property in the township. Along Route 288, he has a building housing a tanning salon, a machine shop, and a storage unit business.

He wanted to buy South Pike Square to expand his business ventures while taking advantage of a prime location near Route 28.

Smith praised Mulone for building a first-class development, which made it a more enticing purchase.

The township supervisors Wednesday approved a subdivision separating the theater from the rest of the property to pave the way for Smith's purchase of the mall and convenience store.

Ken Howard of Bankson Engineers, the township engineer, said the approval is contingent on the documentation of which owner, Smith or Mulone, is responsible for each easement at the site.

"There's never going to be a question about who owns the easements," Howard said.

Smith said after the meeting the sale closing should occur later this month if the process continues to run smoothly.

Supervisor Dan Przybylek, who spearheads development in Buffalo, expressed a vote of confidence in Smith.

"Eric will do a very good job," Przybylek said in an interview. "He's a man of very high energy."

Przybylek said commercial growth such as Smith's plans will help the township.

"We're interested in the taxes he's going to pay," Przybylek said.