Two restaurants, motorcycle dealer planned near Moore theater

Saturday, October 29th 2005, 1:54 pm

By: News On 6

MOORE, Okla. (AP) _ Two restaurants and a Harley-Davidson motorcycle dealership are among the businesses that will be built near the planned $30 million movie theater complex in Moore, a Norman developer said.

Ron Wilhite said the four buyers have closed deals on properties west of Interstate 35.

A $1.25 million Earl's Rib Palace is planned on about an acre of land south of S.W. 19, Steve Mason, president of Earl's, said.

The 5,300-square-foot restaurant will be the fifth Earl's in the metro area and the first Earl's built from the ground up, Mason said. Plans call for construction to begin in January with completion next October.

Earl's is a metro-area company that will celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2006.

Bryan Harley Davidson will have three times the space when it moves to its new 1.34-acre site north of S.W. 19, owner and General Manager Robert Dodson said.

Construction on the $3.5 million, 35,000-square-foot store is expected to start in December, with completion by fall 2006, Dodson said.

The new location on the I-35 frontage road ``will be perfect for weekend events, sales, parking lot events, bands, stunt riders,'' Dodson said.

Wilhite said the sale of 1.75 acres also is complete for a TGI Friday's restaurant. The restaurant will be on the west frontage road along I-35, north of S.W. 19. A spokesman for Friday's could not be reached for comment.

Wilhite said work is ready to proceed on the $30 million Warren Theatre project, which was announced this summer.

The 20-screen luxury movie theater complex is to occupy 25 of the 60 acres Wilhite is developing. Completion is expected in late 2006.

Wilhite said he plans to announce four more commercial projects later this year.