ONEONTA — A restaurant will be constructed at the main entrance of the Southside Mall and will open by September, an official said.

"We are actively negotiating with (three) restaurants," said Chris Lavender, regional director of Glimcher Properties Limited Partnership, which owns and operates the mall.

An Applebee's restaurant corporate spokeswoman said in January the chain is "very interested" in the location. She didn't return calls placed Tuesday.

Lavender wouldn't reveal the names of the other restaurants, but said they are nationally known brands.

The identity of the restaurant will be released to the public as soon as the lease is signed, he said.

The restaurant will be an addition to the mall, extending into the current parking lot, he said.

Lavender said Glimcher officials "feel confident we'll have an executed lease in the next couple months."

The new dining facility won't be a Ruby Tuesdays, a restaurant official said Tuesday.

But that doesn't mean Oneonta won't be home to the chain restaurant later, said Richard Johnson, senior vice president of Ruby Tuesdays.

"If we were to open a location there, I would expect it to be no sooner than 18 months," he said.

Oneonta is not on their development schedule, but "it falls within the region we're looking at," Johnson said.

"It's a good area for us," he said. Other central New York locations have performed well, he said.

"We're always looking to add additional stores in areas where the brand has proven itself," he said.

It would take at least 18 months to make leasing or purchase arrangements, obtain permits, meet zoning requirements, conduct market studies and construct the facility, he said.

Meanwhile, Catskill Tractor Inc., a Franklin-based company, has set up a display at S&S Liquor's former location near the mall's main entrance.

Catskill Tractor manager Roger Boulay said he expects to occupy the space "for at least a couple months."

The liquor store closed Feb. 11 after 12 years in the mall on state Route 23.

An owner of the store said mall management refused to renew the store's lease.

Lavender said the owners asked for a new location within the mall and chose not to renew their lease when the relocation wasn't granted.

The store "couldn't have stayed" anyway, Lavender said, because the mall is maturing and seeking to become "a more family-oriented center."

———

Laura Alys Ward can be reached at (607) 441-7213 or laward@thedailystar.com.