Geoffrey Alexander, the owner of Harmar’s One Alexander Center, says he’s planning to add retail space along Freeport Road at the site of the former St. Francis of Assisi Church.
Crews finished demolishing the church early this month, Alexander said.
The small church had been closed since 2024, according to Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh spokeswoman Jennifer Antkowiak.
The retail center planned at the site will be about 11,500 square feet, Alexander said, enabling it to house about a half-dozen tenant businesses. He purchased the property in November 2025 for $900,000.
Alexander said he’s in talks with potential lessees, though nothing is finalized. In a corridor packed with mostly retail and restaurant chains, he said, the planned space could accommodate more small businesses.
“We’re hoping for more local stuff,” Alexander said.
He said he’s working to have the space built by the end of the year, though he hasn’t yet submitted applications to Harmar.
The former St. Francis of Assisi Parish was formed in 1934 before it merged with the St. Edward Church in Blawnox to form St. Pio of Pietrelcina Parish in 2011.
St. Pio of Pietrelcina was ultimately folded into Christ the King Parish in 2021.
Christ the King Parish currently consists of St. Edward Church in Blawnox, St. Joseph Church in O’Hara, Madonna of Jerusalem and St. Mary churches in Sharpsburg, and St. Scholastica Church in Aspinwall.
Alexander has worked in Harmar since 1987, he said. His One Alexander Center, located directly behind the former church, is home to multiple medical offices and the Alexander Athletic Club.
“I think it’s going to be great for Harmarville,” he said.