PATIENCE PAYS OFF

In development for years, including a pandemic delay, 44 West takes on first tenant

WEST CHESTER » The wait is

over.

The first office tenant has moved in, and water will likely cascade from a plaza fountain sometime this week, at the 50,000 square foot, 44 West, site of the former Mosteller Department Store.

The four-story mixed-use structure occupies the former site of the iconic Mosteller’s department store, at Church and Gay streets.

While the project was delayed about four months due to the ongoing pandemic, builder Eli Kahn, of E. Kahn Development Corp., waited a couple of years until a new borough council became more receptive to modern plans, which called for razing the Mosteller building.

“It was a long time getting here, but we’re here now and it’s really exciting,” Kahn said.

The builder said the 10,000 square foot plaza at 44 West will become a focal point and meeting spot for pedestrians in downtown West Chester.

The centerpiece of the courtyard is a black fountain, with heated water that will operate year round.

“Once the fountain opens up, it will change the way people view it,” Kahn said during a Wednesday phone interview.

The builder previously said that the fountain will be the only element of the project that people talk about 50 years from now.

Both the fountain and building were not traditionally designed. The builder will have the ability to program several different displays at the fountain.

The office space is 100 percent leased, and one of two projected retail tenants, a restaurant, has signed on, with a projected opening date set for early next year. There is space for another restaurant or retail tenant on the ground floor.

BILL RETTEW — MEDIANEWS GROUP The first office tenant has moved in to the 44 West building.